


Stupidly Beautiful - 春

by locallilkiddo



Series: Stupidly Beautiful - Seasons [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Bisexual Male Character, Bisexuality, Body Part Kinks, Body Worship, College, Comedy, Coming Out, Dubious Consent, F/M, Female Dominant, Femdom, Femme boy, Finger Sucking, Fingering, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Frottage, Gay Sex, Gender Deconstruction, Gender Identity, Gender Roles, Gentle femdom, Lace, Lace Panties, Lingerie, M/M, Masturbation, Modeling, Multi, Nipple Play, Pansexual Female Character, Parties, Role Reversal, Romance, Sex Toys, Sexual Identity, Sexuality, University, clear consent, gdf, hints of polyamory, how do i say this- the boy is a bottom, lingerie fetish, pansexuality, queer, update tags as we go
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-29
Updated: 2017-07-26
Packaged: 2018-11-06 08:57:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 61,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11032911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/locallilkiddo/pseuds/locallilkiddo
Summary: Mira didn't see a lace bralette strap.Of course she didn't see a lace bralette strap. How could she?How could have she seen a lace bralette strap on the most notorious kid on campus?orAngry Greek brat meets small Asian art nerd and falls for her hard because she's super butch





	1. Lecture Halls and Parties

**Author's Note:**

> so this is just a 4am split decision to post original work  
> might have chugged down some wine beforehand
> 
> [this work is also on Tapas,](https://tapas.io/episode/702117) but they're new to the novel-publishing game so for my sanity i decided to post this stuff on here as well  
> easier reading, you know the gist. 
> 
> [also i have comics on Tapas about these particular characters and you might notice that it's a poly relationship](https://tapas.io/episode/697924)  
> (we'll get to that next volume) 
> 
> ok thanks

The first time Mira saw him, it was in the lecture hall. 

It was the middle of the day and her coffee high from that morning was a distant memory. Her mind was out of whack, going a million different directions at once since she was juggling six courses, and the deadlines for projects and exams for each course. Midterms were inching closer and closer. She hadn’t gotten enough sleep in months, functioning on three hours that day and four hours beforehand. Mira had the brilliant idea of going to the lecture hall early and sleeping for the half hour before class started, so at least she’d wake up in the place she needed to be in. So many factors of her fresh new university life made her delusional, so she expected that what she had seen was just a figment of her imagination. It’s happened before, so obviously what she had seen had to be unreal. 

She didn’t see a lace bralette strap. 

Of course she didn’t see a lace bralette strap. Even if it was thick and pitch black against fair skin, she didn’t see a lace bralette strap. It was impossible because it meant the owner of that really cute bralette was Deimos. The kid with the wild black hair. One quick google search of his name and one would know exactly his type of character. Fear and terror. He wasn’t melodramatically infamous, but the rumors about him were vicious. Gang affiliation, faculty feuds, mafia connections, the list goes on. He certainly looked the part with pitch black clothes, pulled-up hoodies, ripped jeans and malicious glares. Mira has seen firsthand how scary he could be by accident. One time he bumped into a man, and the man proceeded to dump his coffee over his head. One second later that man and his buddies were on the concrete ground with Deimos’ knuckles bloody. 

So, no, she didn’t see a bralette strap. 

She didn’t watch him take off his hoodie and pick at the straps. She didn’t see the black bralette underneath his thin white shirt. She didn’t see him _adjust_ himself before zipping up his trusty black hoodie back on. 

Yeah, she’s just hallucinating because she’s tired. 

Thankfully, the lecture hall was enormous and the doors didn’t creak, so Mira immediately turned around and went straight for the nearest instant coffee machine. That day her hands were shaking holding her second helping of coffee. She had spilled some on her hand and cursed loudly. But all that energy went away when she walked in for the second time after rehearsing the perfect casual scenario in her head a few minutes outside the door. She was just another classmate, holding coffee in one hand and holding her phone in the other. She did _not_ see a bralette and did _not_ come in earlier. She’ll just casually enter, clearing her throat to alert her presence so he wouldn’t embarrass himself and adjust himself in front of her (again), and look at the various photos on her phone. She would be subtle. _Subtle._

And it worked. She coughed on cue, saw Deimos’ nasty stare and proceeded to play with her phone until she made it to her seat, which was the row in front of him right in the middle. She had passed him by the steps since he sat on the end, and from the silence and lack of violence, he didn’t know she had entered in before and witnessed something that kept her up at night weeks after.

Studies in Asian Art History class was never the same. 

Mira’s life after that day was never the same. 

She went through all the five stages of grief. 

Denial. For a solid week, the week of midterms and project deadlines, she denied ever seeing anything. She didn’t look up online what bralette he wore and give him a metaphorical pat on the back because it was _super_ cute. _She didn’t do that._

Anger. After midterms were over, she was mentally and physically exhausted to the point where everything pissed her off. Her neck and back were in constant pain, she was rethinking her life choices, she hated that everyone was so happy-go-lucky and she despised the fact that she was so hyper aware of Deimos’ presence. He was always in the Arts building in her favourite spot where all the plugins and couches were. He was always in the library in the secret spot with nice wide windows. He was even in the Visual Arts building sitting in her favourite, favourite loveseat that was so fluffy and velvety and cushiony. He even went to the Tim Hortons to-go place at the same time she did. And it infuriated her. Why the hell does he keep popping up? She just wants space and peace and quiet. She’s been trying to forget what she’s seen!

Bargaining. She’s debated if she should just walk into traffic. She’s thought about going to church. She’s even thought about just…talking to him about it? Millions of scenarios went through her mind day after day that all boiled down to two simple things. Either she has to kill herself to forget or confront him about it. But the thing is, Deimos and her share one class together. No way in hell can she just say, “Hey, I saw you wearing a bralette one time, what the fuck was up with that?”

Depression. Deimos wasn’t completely in all the fault for that. It was a mixture of another vicious month of due dates and exams coming up, except this time it was Finals. The end of her first term of her first year in university. She had made solid friends in her other classes and dreaded next term without them. And half of her was going to miss seeing Deimos in class. At one point, she had come to the conclusion that he was pretty cute. And seeing him in Asian Art History, wondering if she’ll ever see a flash of lace lingerie again, was such a weekly routine for her. 

Acceptance. 

It was Finals and Mira was assigned to sit right behind Deimos in an unfamiliar classroom where the desks were uncomfortably close. When the exam started and everyone was hurriedly trying to finish, Mira had seen a flash of baby pink. 

Her eyes zoned in on the nape of his neck exposed. The professor asked him to pull down his hoodie and revealed his raven black, wild hair and long light olive neck. Just for a moment, he stretched and his hoodie slipped lower than expected, showing off a pink cotton strap. Thankfully, everyone else was absorbed with their test that they didn’t see it. 

But Mira did. Deimos was wearing a bralette. 

After Finals week passed with a whirlwind of all-nighters, panic attacks, pills and tears, not only Mira but the rest of the university population let out a long sigh of relief. Which was then fueled with the absolute urge to party. 

Mira usually never attended such crazy events before, but after the shitstorm she went through for the past month and then some, she decided drinking away all her problems would be the perfect solution. She had friends that would take care of her and friends that would party with her. The party wasn’t advertised all over the university so she didn’t need to worry about it being too crazy, but it was advertised in all her classes to classmates she was at least comfortable around. The hosts had their own place, were well off financially, and the area was safe and secluded. The situation was perfect. _Absolutely perfect._

So that night after a little pre-gaming at a friend’s house, her crew and she drove up to a house pulsating with life. Cars were lined up in front of the mansion and people seemed to ooze out of the nooks and crannies of the place. Pink, purple, blue, red and green light poured out of the windows, and the music vibrated the soft ground as Mira approached. Classmates greeted her at the door and tossed her an unopened can. She sipped happily at her bubbling drink and took in the sights and sounds inside, amazed at the sheer size of the mansion and the amount of people that came. People were dancing in the foyer and living room, couples were flirting and making out on the stairs, groups were playing Mario Kart, circles were playing card games and in the kitchen a group of boys were playing beer pong. So many other subsections of people were doing so many other things the deeper Mira wandered along, like how one room was dedicated to vaping parties and another had snacks for the potheads. Mira found herself on the various pockets of couches playing games, cheering for her friend, Dede, who was a beast at Smash. She had her fair share of playing Mario Kart and lost epically on Rainbow Road. 

The hours blended together and on her fourth can of whatever, she had gotten the courage to dance in the foyer. It helped that they played songs she was familiar to and she sang along to them. Classmates she barely spoke to became best friends as they bonded over their dorky dance moves and horrible singing. She even bumped into the hosts of the party, Charles and Hayden, and earned a whole song’s length of their time laughing at Hayden’s magnificent twerking abilities. 

Afterwards, Hayden ended up joining Mira on the hunt to get people to play some movie drinking games. When they rounded up a solid group of ten amazing and talented people, Hayden unlocked one of the rooms into a boss-ass theater where they proceeded to get spectacularly wasted watching Home Alone. With a new reinvigorated energy in her since Mira was fucking _gone_ , she ended up playing Truth or Dare with Hayden and her movie group. Somehow they ended up playing by the railings looking down at the foyer where every single person in that group embarrassed the shit out of themselves to the dancing party below. A girl and guy had to switch clothes and parade around the house, a boy was forced to throw toilet paper like streamers down on the cheering crowd below, a girl froze her bra and screamed in horror when she clipped it back on. With Mira drunk, she felt so much freer and open and adventurous to the point where she gladly chose dare in this stupid game, which lead her to making out with Hayden in the washroom. A peck led to a deep kiss and that deep kiss led to Hayden swiping her off her feet and into the washroom. Simple equation. Simple results. Mira had a one-track mind at this point. The bottom line was that she was having _fun._ After four strenuous months of studying, studying and studying, making out with a hot guy should be a requirement. It’s been forever since she’s felt the warmth of another and whatever if she barely knew him. 

In that moment, he was everything she ever needed. 

Eventually, Hayden did leave her after Charles called about an emergency happening in the downstairs bathroom, and whispered in her ear to go to his bedroom on the third floor with the key he slipped into her hand. Drowsily, Mira complied and stumbled up the stairs, found a locked door and unlocked it, and tumbled in. 

This was her third time seeing him. 

However this time, Mira didn’t just see a strap. 

Deimos was standing there, shirtless for the exception of a black, shiny bralette. It was one of those pieces that mostly consisted of the strap material making the framework of the bra, and a sheer, translucent material that covered over the breast. This one bralette, however, had black roses to cover his pink nipples. 

Mira’s eyes racked down Deimos’ slender yet firm, inverted triangle figure. He looked good with that bralette. Her eyes wandered to his hips and she wondered if he had matching panties. However, in an instant his hips moved and he surged forward at her. Shocked, Mira was yanked deeper into the room while Deimos slammed the door shut. Boisterous laughter passed by. If Deimos had hesitated for any second longer, Mira wouldn’t have been the only one who knew of his secret. 

Thankfully and unthankfully, she still was. 

Deimos’ stare was blistering on her skin after the group passed. It dripped of malice and it took Mira by surprise so much, she ended up blurting out something spectacular. 

“Cute bralette.”

 

Deimos only knew Mira because she always fell asleep before class started. Hell, she fell asleep wherever she was. In the Arts building, in the library, in the Visual Arts studios. If the room was warm or if she had a warm jacket on, she’d pass out. Even if she chugged down an energy drink _and_ a coffee, she’d pass out. Yet, incredibly, she’d always wake up the moment class began, rubbing the slumber from her eyes and ripping her laptop out to tap down furious notes. 

Another reason why he knew her was the way she dressed. Mira didn’t look like a girl. She had short hair that on most days than not, would be shoved up into her signature red or black beanie, which made her look like one of those skateboarding assholes he always sees at the bus stop. She also wore exclusively male embroidered bomber jackets and baggy graphic tees. Her pants looked female, they were tight at her hips, but most of them were just as baggy as her shirts and she’d top off her whole look with some unisex converse or thick boots. 

What Deimos is saying is, _she looked like a little boy._ Not the hot college guys that roamed around the campus but a short middle schooler that decided to buy clothes he could “grow into.” It was shocking for him personally when she spoke for the first time. Her voice was so, _so_ soft and high-pitched. Her voice was like a bell, poignant yet subtle at the same time. It has gotten deeper over time though and Deimos has noticed she only reverts to high-pitched rambling when she’s nervous. Which, once again leads to her masculinity. When she’s tired, she has a raspy, low voice. It’s actually mind-blowing how quickly she can click from girl to guy. 

But then again, if it’s just mind-blowing for her voice to change, when Mira comes to class in _actual girl clothes,_ he should be dead already. When Mira wants to dress feminine, _she dresses feminine._ She still doesn’t wear makeup, but she makes up for that fact by wearing adorable short, yet not revealing, dresses with remarkable thigh high socks. Her dresses can range from deep reds to pastel floral designs, but they all follow the same design by having just an inch of that bare skin between her dress and socks exposed that makes Deimos go insane. He didn’t know why he was so invested in that patch of skin. He didn’t know why he was so invested in her thick thighs in thigh high socks. And he didn’t know why Mira only wore dresses once per month. 

Thankfully, what was more frequent was her fluffy hair. What hid underneath all those beanies and hoodies was thick, voluminous locks. They flared out in every direction and couldn’t be tamed with how many times Mira has ran her fingers through her hair (and yet again even that action seemed so masculine). Just the sight of her crazy bobbed look made her look more like a girl, and also made Deimos’ eyes wander from his laptop to her. 

But, if he’s being absolutely serious, Mira meant nothing to him. 

“Cute bralette.”

Until now. 

Today, Mira wasn’t wearing a beanie. She was still wearing her signature graphic tee and high-wasted baggy pants. Her large glasses slipped down her flat nose as she stared straight at him. More notably, the bralette he was wearing. 

At this moment, Deimos regretted all his life choices.

He should have never caved into Charles and Hayden’s pleas. He should have never thought he could go to a _party._ He shouldn’t have worn his favourite bralette tonight. Even if it might make him feel better, he should have _fucking not done that._ Hell, he shouldn’t have gone to this university in the first place. God, he shouldn’t have even left Greece. He shouldn’t have even been _born._

He was sure no one would barge in when he was changing. He triple-checked the fucking door to make sure it was locked. He was only just going to take off the bralette, shove it into his pocket and proceed to find Hayden to finally get wasted without worrying about flashing anyone. 

But of course, out of everyone he knew, Mira somehow opened the locked door right at the moment he took off his shirt. 

“I swear to god, if you fucking tell anyone I’m going to _kill_ you,” he finally spat back. A solid minute passed between them, with Mira pinned to the door and Deimos’ hand clamping down hard on her wrist. 

She glanced at his boiling stare, blinking slowly. She was fucking drunk out of her mind. 

“I wasn’t planning to,” she said, her breath rank. 

Deimos paused. From all his previous knowledge about her, she probably wouldn’t. But, knowing that she was fucking blasted out of her mind did not bring him peace. Hotly, Deimos let go of Mira’s wrist and shoved her against the door. 

“Don’t move,” he threatened. Quickly, he slipped off his bralette, shoved it into his butt pocket and slipped on his shirt again. Grabbing his leather jacket, he noticed how Mira’s half-lidded eyes stayed on his figure the whole time. Pausing, he stared back at her. 

“Can you even walk in a straight line?” He questioned. 

Mira slowly blinked up at him. “Of f-fucking course I can,” she slurred. Confidently, she straightened up against the door and took one step. Her legs crumpled and she fell straight to the floor like a doll. Hastily, Deimos caught her before she smashed her face into the rug and felt all her weight push down on her. For being so short, she was fucking heavy. 

“Fucking hell,” she grumbled. 

“Yeah, fucking hell.”

“I swear I’m not that drunk. I know what’s happening, m-my body isn’t keeping up,” she murmured into his ear. It sent shivers down his spine. She draped her body onto him, arms wrapped around his neck as he hoisted her up by the waist. Even though this was uncomfortable, this was probably better than having her parading around outside. 

Deimos will probably just have to camp out here for the night until she falls asleep and hopefully thinks this was all a dream. 

“I can’t trust you,” he hissed. 

Mira sighed, another hot breath sending shivers. “Y’know, I’ve seen you in lingerie before.”

He paused. _“What?!”_

“One time before class, you were in the lecture hall alone and you took off your hoodie and adjusted your straps,” she slurred. She sighed and rested her head on his chest. “And then when we were doing our final exam I saw it again.”

Shame overcame Deimos like a tsunami. Nausea twisted and pulled at his guts. He was going to pass out of sheer embarrassment. He thought he was being careful. He was always being careful. He’d never take off his hoodie without checking if anyone was there. He’d never…

“I think it’s pretty cool, personally,” Mira said suddenly. 

Hotly, Deimos glared at her to see any sarcastic smirk. However, there was just the redness of her cheeks and a goofy little smile. 

“Bralettes are super cute and great for flat-chested people like you and me,” she laughed. “Well, then again, I do have boobs if we’re going to argue about it.”

He wasn’t going to argue. 

“I could never pull off a bralette though, all my clothes don’t suit bralettes. The reason to wear them is to show them, and I don’t have anything deep-cut to show them,” she mumbled. “But then again, neither do you and you suit them so well?”

Deimos just stared at her. 

“How many bralettes do you have? I’ve only got a red and black one,” she asked, tipping her head to the side. 

“Thirteen.”

Another dazzling smile blossomed on her rosy cheeks. “Woah, dude! That’s sick! Do you have any other lingerie? Like babydolls? Lace bras? Garters?” 

Deimos didn’t need to tell her anything about himself to her. It was none of her business and in her drunken state, it was probably easy to switch topics to something completely different. He didn’t need to tell her shit. They were strangers. 

But Mira was the first stranger to act so positively. 

_“God, guys wearing lingerie? Fucking disgusting.”_

_“They’re probably faggot perverts.”_

Deimos swallowed thickly and breathed through his nose. He wasn’t in high school anymore nor Greece either. 

“A few babydolls and bustiers…” He murmured softly. “And girdle and garters…”

“Holy shit, dude!” She chuckled happily. “That’s fucking rad! I could never pull of such tantalizing clothes.”

Deimos was amazed she could even use the word, “tantalizing,” without stuttering. 

“I think you definitely could,” he said calmly. 

Mira blinked at him and laughed again. “Nah, dude. I still wear underwear I bought in middle school. I’m the epitome of _not sexy._ You though? Yeah, you could totally pull those all off.”

“You look really great in thigh highs though,” he said a little bit too quickly. Heat blossomed on his cheeks but Mira looked unfazed. 

She laughed and thanked him. Where the hell was this conversation going? 

“So, got panties to match the bras?” 

Deimos wanted to bury himself alive knowing the fact that his body flared up in response to Mira saying, “panties.” She still looked at him innocently. This whole talk felt innocent as if they were two girlfriends chatting about just another normal thing. A conversation that Deimos envied for most of his life. But now it’s happening. 

“Y-Yeah…”

“But what about your…package?” Her laughter was bubbly. Naïve. 

“There’s websites online.”

“That’s so cool,” she giggled again and again. She was so incredibly excited by this it made his organs twist. “Do you buy all your stuff online?”

He nodded. 

“No wonder they’re always so pretty,” she sighed. She rubbed her eyes and groaned. “God, fuck, everything is spinning.”

“How many cans did you have?”

“Too many,” she groaned. She paused and recollected herself before giving him another dopey smile. “How long have you had such a hobby?”

For a moment, the conversation was just about to switch into something new, but yet again, Mira was fixated on his fucking secret. 

Yet half of him wanted to keep talking to her. And that half was way more vocal and excited. 

“W-Well…I’ve always liked feminine things when I was little, but I started collecting lingerie when I was seventeen.”

“What other feminine things did you like when you were little?”

“Toys, socks, d-dresses and hair pins,” he muttered softly. He hasn’t told anyone this but his older sister. He felt dizzy. 

“I totally get it. I was in love with action figures and baggy sweaters,” she snickered. “Hey, I totally own a few boxers and boxer-briefs.” 

Boxers probably looked cute on her. 

“Is it because of the designs?” He chuckled. 

“Absolutely,” she sneered. “I’ve got one with pineapples and bananas on it. Another has donuts and pizza.”

He laughed. Mira laughed with him and relaxed against his side. 

“I hope you don’t feel ashamed of liking what you like,” she said, her voice clear and serious. “I think it’s pretty fucking rad and you probably look awesome.”

Deimos tensed up when she stared up at him, her cheek resting on his jugular and lips so close to his. 

“…Thanks,” he muttered. 

She smiled. Out of all the scenarios that could have played out, this one seemed the most improbable: both of them sitting in the middle of an unfamiliar bedroom with music and a chorus of a million people pulsating in the background talking about lingerie Deimos specifically wears. And the central theme: Mira was genuinely intrigued. 

“So,” she muttered after a long period of silence. “Are you wearing matching underwear?”

 

She didn’t mean to slip up so fantastically like that. 

But it’s been on her mind this whole time. Yes, she was genuinely interested in his special secret hobby because lingerie is super pretty, but also another large and vocal part of her brain was a pervert. And she slipped up big time letting that out. 

The expression Deimos gave her was a mix of shock and betrayal. He looked like she punched him in the face and if someone asked about what underwear she was wearing she’d probably give that look too. 

“You’re so drunk,” he said bluntly. His hated expression softened into annoyance and he let go of her. The world was spinning again and she felt like she was falling. However, Deimos casually lifted her up and plopped her onto the bed, watching how her head rolled back and she groaned in pain. 

“S-Sorry,” she slurred. All the alcohol was hitting her at once. The sensation was overwhelming, it felt like she was drowning and spinning and falling. Her sense of judgement was out of the window by now and before Deimos could run, she grabbed his wrist and yanked him onto the bed. “No, wait, d-dude-”

Hotly, he ripped his wrist out of her grasp. He stared daggers at her. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make it weird, I actually wanna be friends with you,” she said as quickly as she could, even though she couldn’t understand exactly what she had said. Dizzily, she sat up to try to prove a point but the boy immediately pushed her back down on the mattress. 

“Chill.” He frowned at her. 

“Deimos, you’re so cool and knowing you wear lingerie makes you cooler.”

“That’s usually not the normal response.”

“When in the world am I ever normal? Have you seen me? I’m a little baby boy with boobs.”

“Well, I’m not going to argue with that.”

“You’re cute.”

“Shut the fuck up,” he snapped. But Mira could see a blush blossoming on his olive skin. “Brat.”

“Cutie.”

“You’re so fucking drunk,” he sighed, rubbing his eyes. “You probably won’t even remember this conversation.”

“I will and next time I’m sober, let’s get coffee.”

“Fuck off.”

Mira will have to admit, being so intoxicated meant she had no filter to stop vocalizing the thoughts she was thinking. However, being so intoxicated meant she was being more honest and open, which lent to her being able to talk so comfortably with Deimos. And from judging how he relaxed on the edge of the bed, he didn’t hate her completely. 

“You’re not so scary,” she hummed. “You’re a cute n’ cool lingerie connoisseur.”

“You’re only saying that because you’re drunk.” 

Pouting, Mira whacked his arm. He looked hurt and glared at her. 

“Deimos, you’re pretty friggin cool,” she said. 

“I fucking hate you,” he hissed and rubbed his neck nervously. Mira smiled and rolled over to him, happily laying her head in his lap without his permission. He stared down at her in shock and Mira felt his thighs tense up.

_“Ehehe.”_

“Get off.”

Like the little shit she was, she wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him. He was warm and slowly Mira’s eyes fluttered shut. 

“Mira, what the fuck.”

“Where are you from originally?”

There was a pause. Even though Mira couldn’t see, she knew he was looking down at her and calculating how to deal with her. And from the sudden release of tension in his legs, he decided to open up. A smile crept up on her face and she buried her face into his sweater. He smelled nice. 

“Greece.”

“Ha, I knew it. You’ve got a slight accent. Also, you look like the perfect Greek Classical Ideal.”

“Thanks?”

“It’s a compliment. Did you move here for school?”

“…Yeah.”

“Live on campus?”

“No, in the apartments near the campus though.”

“That’s awesome,” she chuckled. “Must be crazy moving to a new country.”

“Yeah, bullshit like this happens.”

“I’m cool bullshit.”

He let out a chuckle. 

“Made any cool friends?”

He paused again. 

“Not really.”

“Well now you’ve got the coolest friend.”

“Screw off.”

Mira sighed and rolled over onto her back so she could stare up at him. “It’s the rumors, isn’t it?”

“You’re just dissecting me apart,” he sighed, annoyed. His eyes narrowed. 

“They’re not true at all, aren’t they?”

He rolled his eyes. 

“Imma fight whoever started them.”

“That would be a sight.”

“I’ll do it. Who’s bullying you?”

“No one,” he hissed. Suddenly a hand was in her face and covered her eyes. “Go to sleep.”

“That’s sounds really appealing actually.”

“Then do it.”

“I can’t, I gotta amuse you.”

“No you don’t.”

Mira smiled and shoved his hand off her face. Slowly but surely, she sat up this time, grabbing Deimos’ shoulder to prop her up. He reluctantly helped her, glaring at her the whole time and let her rest her cheek on his shoulder. Sighing, Mira listened to his quick breathing as well as the ruckus downstairs. Occasionally people would pass the door and when a recognizable song thumped through the blasted speakers, there was an influx of cheering. For a while, both of them were insanely quiet. 

“I’m not wearing matching underwear tonight,” he said suddenly. 

Mira blinked and glanced at him. His face was completely red. 

“I just wore the bralette because it brings me ease.”

“Like a good luck charm?”

He nodded shyly. 

“That’s awesome,” she chuckled. “Wearing feminine panties, isn’t it uncomfortable?”

He refused to look Mira in the eye. Her stare landed on his lips where a pink tongue swiped at and teeth bit. She felt a blush spread across her cheeks. 

“You probably look good in panties.”

His eyes clicked to her. They were wide.

Mira knew how close she was to Deimos. She could smell his minty breath. And being so close to his face made her realize there was a little bit of blue in his olive green eyes. They were so striking with his dark skin. And he wasn’t glaring at her. 

God, she was so drunk. 

She wondered if Deimos’ love of lingerie correlated with sexual desire. He could totally just like it aesthetically and how it makes him feel, but she also wondered if there was any underlying tone to it all. Was he turned on in public when he walked around in lingerie in dull clothes? Did he like how the fabric feels when he touches himself? Does he wear lingerie to feel sexually good?

Mira loved wearing her favourite underwear for a late night “relief session.” She felt sexy and good and loved the sensation of touching herself through her clothes. Did Deimos like it too?

She stared at his long eyelashes, thick eyebrows and red lips. 

“You’re beautiful,” she said. 

Deimos sucked in a breath. 

Suddenly, the door banged open. 

“Mira?” Hayden called before registering the two individuals on the bed. 

 

Instantly, Deimos backed off Mira’s advance. He pretended he wasn’t about to kiss the shit out of her and stared at the young attractive male at the door. Hayden stared straight at him, a sort of possessiveness beneath the cool gaze. Deimos knew how compromising their positions were. Mira hand her hand in his lap, squeezing his thigh and her face inches from his. There was also the fact that they were on the bed. His heart was ramming against his ribcage. 

“Dominoes, you dog,” Hayden laughed bubbly. The laugh wasn’t genuine, Deimos wasn’t an idiot. He took Hayden’s slight joke as a sign to quickly get up and away from Mira to still his beating heart. 

“Don’t call me that,” he hissed, rubbing his neck. “Also, no it’s not what you think.”

Mira could barely keep herself upright without Deimos. It sort of made him want to come back and help but with Hayden’s eyes boring holes into his skull, he tried to stay as far away from Mira as possible. To him, Mira and Deimos were two strangers and not some sort of secret couple. To him, they probably looked like the world’s most unlikely pair. A sweet little tomboy and a monster. 

“Hey, I’m open to anything if Mira’s cool with it.” To top off the cake, Hayden winked. 

What the fuck is wrong with him? 

Hayden was the epitome of a rich white boy. There weren’t a shortage of girls that loved his looks, and from judging his own house, he didn’t have a shortage of cash as well. Deimos had two classes with this guy and he always had people left and right flocking to him like bees and honey. He wasn’t the classiest guy, but probably a good thing for Mira?

Deimos paused. 

“Wait, are you two a thing,” he asked suddenly. 

“We furiously made out in the washroom.” Smirking, Hayden shrugged. Mira bit her lip and chuckled. 

_Holy shit._

Mira didn’t seem like the type to just dive into something like that. It might be the alcohol or it might be just poor judgement on Deimos’ part. Whatever it was, thinking of Mira “furiously making out” made him flare up (though it couldn’t beat Mira saying panties probably looked good on him). Would she take charge or be dominated? How would she kiss? Was she a biter? A licker? Has Hayden touched her face because her cheeks are really soft?

For a moment, all three of them were silent before Hayden spoke up again, a little cocky this time. 

“Deimos? If you’re going to watch, then by all means stay, but if not, you wanna peace out?” He asked with a smile. 

Deimos stared at him. “Wait, _what?”_

Hayden’s striking smile dropped. “What do you mean, _what?”_

“Mira’s fucking drunk, you can’t have sex with her,” he said bluntly. 

She laughed. 

“Are you being serious right now, Deimos?” Hayden frowned. “Mira and I _really like_ each other.”

“She can’t give clear consent,” Deimos shot back. Hotly, he looked at her. “She can barely sit up straight!” Something deep within him bubbled up. His hands were shaking. Hayden was absolute trash. 

“I don’t believe you’re pulling the consent card.” Hayden shook his head. 

A wave of rage passed over him. Deimos paused to recollect himself before walking over to Mira. 

“I’m bringing you home, this is fucking ridiculous,” he hissed. 

“W-What, why?” Mira slurred. Her eyes widened in surprise when Deimos hoisted her up into his arms. 

“Are you serious, Dominoes?” Hayden cocked an eyebrow. He seemed pissed off, but gaging how easily he was to shove out of the way to get the door, he didn’t care about Mira _that_ much. Which made Deimos angrier?

Mira sighed and rested her head against his chest. 

“I’m absolutely fucking serious,” he spat back. 

“How will I know you’re not going to assault her,” he rebutted, crossing his arms. 

“I’m not an asshole,” he called back, heading for the stairs. And that was the end of Hayden. 

With the thick crowds of people, it was hard to maneuver around carrying a small girl in his arms without bumping into at least one person. The stairs were the hardest part since the light was so dim and there could be anything on the steps from empty solo cups to chunks of vomit. People stared at him as he passed, their stares burning into his skin. 

Mira hummed and looked up at Deimos, her eyes straining to see him in such dark light. 

“I feel like shit,” she grumbled. “What the hell.”

“That’s what you get for not pacing yourself.”

“Are you seriously bringing me home?”

“Did you come alone or with a group?”

“Group.”

“Who’s your designated driver?”

“Dede.”

Thankfully, Deimos knew her and from the loud cheers of her name, knew where she was. There was a monstrous crowd in front of one of the largest televisions in the house with people cheering on Mira’s friend and another individual who were versing each other in Smash Bros. They amount of eyes that zoned onto him was intense but thankfully (again) it didn’t last long as Dede destroyed her opponent. She rejoiced, high-fiving the people around her before landing her gaze on Deimos, her eyes going wide. Quickly, she scampered over. 

“What’s wrong with her?” She asked. 

“She’s way too drunk,” he responded. Dede was tall, almost as tall as Deimos and when she’s angry she can be pretty scary. The last thing he wants to do is piss her off.“If it’s alright with you, I can drive her home.”

It was blistering hot and insanely loud downstairs. Deimos could barely hear her reply but from the teasing sneer and clap on his back, he assumed everything was alright. Which was odd because if Deimos saw one of his friends being carried bridal style by a man that looked like, well, _him,_ he’d immediately say no. 

On his way out, a group of drunk buffoons hooted and hollered at him as he carried Mira out the door, their energy immediately souring Deimos’ already steadily declining patience. He shot them a nasty glare, but it only seemed to rile them up even more. Good thing he was leaving this goddamn house and probably never coming back after realizing how much of a dick Hayden was. How could he even think of having sex with Mira when she’s so out of whack? 

After somehow getting her into the passenger seat in his old truck, Deimos slipped into his seat and ignited the engine. The roar of the vehicle made Mira jump and hazily look around his old tin can. 

“How are you?” Deimos asked calmly, blasting the heaters as he waited for the car to warm up. 

“I feel sick.”

“That’s what you fucking get.”

“No, like I feel like I’m going to hurl.”

Deimos stared at her. “Don’t fucking do it in the car.”

Mira clutched her stomach and she started to breathe hard. 

_“Mira, I swear to God if you fucking barf in the car-”_


	2. Let's Get Coffee and Some Other Stuff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> disaster control and promises

Current situation: Mira woke up in her bed with a pounding headache feeling like absolute shit. Somehow she ended curled up at the edge of her bed with half her pillows gone and her comforter missing. It took her moment but the clothes she was wearing was _not_ hers. They were larger than anything she owned and all a shade of black. 

Slowly, Mira sat up. 

Her room seemed normal. The usual mess at her closet and desk while her shelves were orderly and untouched. Her paintings and sketches were lined and pinned up on the walls, her art supplies strewn about on the floor. The usual. 

After somehow untangling herself from her sheets and finding the strength in her weak legs, she got up and padded through her room. It was Monday and all her roommates had class except for her, but from the noises she’s hearing in the living room, she wasn’t alone. Hastily (as hastily as she could), she crept through the hallways to the wide and bright living room. The television was on and sitting on her couch was Deimos. 

Mira paused, instantly remembering all of last night up to when she told Deimos he’d look hot in _panties._

_“Holy fuck,”_ she blurted out loud. Immediately, her face went red when he turned around and glared at her. Every cell of her body was on fire. She wanted to melt into the ground. 

“It’s fucking two in the afternoon,” he said bluntly. 

“Why are you in my house,” she asked, feeling light-headed. 

Deimos’ lip twitched. “Don’t tell me you forgot last night.”

Mira stared at him and shrugged. “Bralettes and underwear?”

He face-palmed and sunk into the couch. Mira walked over and sat in the chair adjacent from it. With further inspection, he looked fucking _tired._ Like, hungover-and-dead-inside tired. 

“You fucking vomited in my car,” he glared. “When I was trying to be a Good Samaritan and drive you home.”

“Oh.”

Her response made him go insane. “I had to drive two hours with the whole truck smelling like fucking _barf_ trying to decipher your stupidass directions that almost led me out of the city. Thankfully, your college roommates called and helped me get to your place.”

“Holy shit, I’m so sorry,” Mira whined, covering her face in shame. “Did I get chunks all over your seat?”

“Thankfully, you vomited on the door and window. You were halfway out the truck when you spewed shit everywhere,” he said sarcastically. “I even fucking gave you my shirt because you got shit all over yourself and you were so disgusting and tried to wipe it up with your shirt.”

Mira gagged. “Oh my god I’m so sorry.”

“You fucking owe me,” he threatened. 

“Dude, I’ll do anything,” she said desperately. She scrambled onto the couch and held out her pinky. “Pinky-promise. I’ll let you fucking cut off my pinky if I ever break it.”

He shifted away from her and Mira died a little inside because she probably smelled like shit, vomit and alcohol. Hesitantly, he wrapped his finger around hers. “Promise.”

Afterwards, Mira told him to brainstorm things for Mira to do for him while she took a scalding shower mulling over what has happened in the past twenty four hours. She wanted to scream in the shower (which is a usual thing because of how many times supressed memories come back when she’s bathing), but with the addition of Deimos in her sacred and holy house, she ended up just whining in agony and smacking her forehead against the tiled walls. Too many things happened at once. 

Finals were done and over. 

She went to a party. 

At said party she partied with Dede and her other university friends. 

At one point she made out with Hayden, a god of a human. 

After that, she walked in and interrupted Deimos changing. 

Deimos was wearing a bralette. A cute one too. 

She ended up fangirling about lingerie with him. 

She ended up declaring that they were absolutely friends now and she’d never leave him. 

Then the topic went back to lingerie but specifically that Deimos probably looked fucking hot in panties. 

That was not a lie. 

She barfed in his car. 

Mira had such a kink for guys wearing feminine lingerie. 

She couldn’t handle it anymore. 

Mira screamed in the shoulder. 

“What the fuck was that,” Deimos commented after Mira came back in fresh clothes and dripping hair. 

“I was reliving stress,” she muttered, wandering to the fridge.

“You sounded like a dying whale.”

“That’s the usual,” she sighed. Calmly, she opened the fridge and realized that there was absolutely nothing to eat. She groaned at the sad sight, her body needing caffeine as well as the sweet release of death. Slamming it closed like a pissed off middle schooler, she glanced at him. “Wanna go for coffee?”

 

Mira really shouldn’t be having coffee at three in the afternoon, but Deimos wouldn’t tell her that. She looked like shit, but then again one look in the mirror and Deimos knew he looked like shit too. He spent the whole night taking care of Mira’s drunk ass so of course he looks like he hasn’t showered and slept in decades. She’s a fucking riot from the vomiting in his car to the singing when she should have been giving directions to the stripping of her clothes to mop up vomit to the cute bra she was wearing when she was shirtless in her truck to the sudden crying session at a red light. 

What did Deimos get himself into? Last night felt like a fever dream bordering nightmare. Mira _was_ a walking nightmare. She knew too much about him and she was so hard to handle drunk. If she ever had another drunken episode, it’s one hundred percent likely for her to just spew out a fun fact about Deimos’ favourite hobby. She told him stuff at that red light he didn’t want to know about like how for the longest time she had a crush on her roommate (who he met at five in the morning carrying a vomit-covered Mira) and still hasn’t completely recovered from it or how one time in high school she accidentally peed on the washroom floor. All the preconceived notions Deimos had of her went out the door after handling her for the night. Mira was the worst. 

“Coffee and food is on me,” she said as they arrived to a cute indie café. Deimos squinted at her, following this little midget inside this dim and rustic shop that played music from records. The barista knew her immediately, a pale-skinned dude with a lip piercing and guessed her drink without any of her help. She laughed and nodded, poking at Deimos to order as well. He grumbled out a black coffee and a wrap. Afterwards, they sat in one of these little cubicles where students could camp out in and study at with soft seating and easy-on-the-eyes lighting. From how the barista served them their drinks and chatted happily with Mira, it was obvious that this was her workstation. 

“What the hell are you looking at?” Deimos hissed while he sipped at his steaming drink. Mira had this stupid smug smirk on her face. 

“I’m so sorry,” she laughed and paused, trying to compose herself. “Sorry, that doesn’t seem genuine. I’m actually, like, really sorry for last night.”

“You should be,” he muttered. 

“How did my roommates let you stay over?” She asked as she nibbled on her oatmeal cookie. 

“It was five in the morning and they were tired out of their minds,” he responded. Raven, her oldest friend from elementary and the one Mira had a crush on for the longest time, was waiting at the door for them and didn’t help at all. From the messy hair and half-lidded eyes, she had just woken up to show Deimos where the medicine, washroom and washing machine was before falling asleep again. Her other two roommates were dead asleep while Mira was a sack of potatoes and made Deimos throw her onto the bed and take off her skinny jeans for her. 

He blushed a little. Mira was wearing cute underwear. 

Scrubbing away that thought by literally scrubbing his face, he gulped down his drink and ate his wrap in seconds. Mira took her time, looking out the window absent-mindedly at the snow blanketing the buildings and sidewalks. Her cheeks were still red from the cold. Maybe if she was this quiet and mysterious all the time, Deimos might have fallen in love with her. 

He might have. 

“Do you work or have anything to do today?” Mira asked suddenly. 

Deimos shook his head.

“Ok, that’s at least one thing I don’t have to feel guilty about,” she laughed. 

“A million to go,” he shot back sarcastically. Mira frowned and sipped her drink glaring at him. He smirked, hiding his smile with his drink. 

To be completely honest, Deimos had no idea what Mira could do for him. Honestly, he wasn’t too angry at her since she already made a deal about thoroughly cleaning his car on the walk here, but still insisted to repay him. Free coffee and breakfast would be nice for a bit, but it felt like he was just using her for free food (even though the offer seems super appealing). She can’t drive for shit, but could pay for gas if he drives her to school. 

“What classes to you have next term?” Deimos asked calmly. He knew Mira was a Visual Arts student, he was just a plain old Arts student, and it was a slim chance they had classes together because of how specific Mira’s course was and how broad his was, but it was still something to think about how she could help him study and vice versa. 

Mira perked up and pulled out her phone. “I probably have a schedule in my photos- ah, found it. Here.”

“You have a six course schedule next term?”

“Yeah, and I’m going to die.”

“Rest in pieces. I’ve got four.”

“Yeah, fuck you too,” Mira grumbled. Her pouting was cute.

“Oh shit.” Deimos’ eyebrows raised up in surprise. “We’ve got two classes together. Studies in Modern Film and Medieval English Literature.”

Mira mimicked his surprised expression. “I never thought of you as such a nerd.”

Deimos frowned even though he was pretty happy to know Mira wasn’t going to fade away yet. Not like he cared about her in the first place; she was an interesting character and it’s too much of a hassle to go find her around campus if their schedules don’t match up. 

Glancing over at the little demon on the other side of the table, Deimos studied Mira’s lips as she bit into her little snacks and sipped at her drink that never seemed to end. 

“So, what movies do you like?” He asked suddenly. They had a class in modern film so obviously she liked film. From her character (before the party), Deimos assumed she liked Oscar-nominated historical films or indie films with beautiful cinematography. In class, she’s always chatting and dissecting art pieces thoroughly, finding every minuscule meaning behind it. She’s probably enthralled by indie arthouse films. 

Mira hummed and shrugged. “Action movies, sci-fi? Blockbuster summer ‘bro’ movies,” she said bluntly. Deimos paused. 

Once again she pulls the rug underneath him. 

“What kind of action movies?” Deimos was so shocked, he laughed. 

“Spy thrillers? Superheroes, apocalypse, revenge stories,” she listed off. “My favourites are _Pacific Rim, Kingsmen, Kill Bill, Mad Max: Fury Road, Star Wars,_ etc.”

_She’s perfect._

Deimos blinked and cleared his throat. “And science fiction?”

“Oh!” Her eyes sparkled. “I love space movies! I loved I _nterstellar, The Martian, Sunshine, Arrival_ and you get the point. I haven’t gotten around to watching _2001: A Space Odyssey_ yet though.”

“You’re missing out.” He smirked and leaned against the table. 

“What movies do you like?” Mira laughed. 

“Most of the same things you like,” he chuckled. He was actually genuinely surprised how similar they were. “ _Whiplash_ and _Nightcrawler_ are good as well.”

Enthralled, Mira reached out for his hand and tapped it excitedly. He’s seen her do this stupid cute quirk of hers before with her friends when she gets excited about a certain topic. “I loved _Whiplash_!” 

Somehow for at least a solid hour Deimos ended up chatting about movies with Mira. She was passionate and articulate with the movies she liked, pouring out his heart to him about the hidden meanings and how beautiful certain scores were. She went into how cinematography, colour and composition influences greatly with a scene and its tone, and how beautiful and fluid animation can be with certain studios. She was animated when she talked, more expressive than he’s ever seen her, with her eyes sparkling like stars and lips pulled into a huge grin. She rubbed off onto him and he found himself smiling whenever she went off these random but extremely passionate tangents that ranged from the underlying meaning of human’s existence to how adorable an actor was in portraying a scene. Whenever Deimos gave input about a movie, she made him feel so warm and… _heard,_ with her eyes staring straight at him and nodding vigorously to his opinion. He felt…valuable to her. 

After the conversation bled into different topics, Mira still had that loving, caring and poignant focus. When Deimos complained about living home alone, Mira nodded slowly and offered her help in anything if he was ever feeling down (which was a lot). But, she also had a way of not belittling him and trying to be a mother-like figure. She understood his troubles and told him that she’d be there for him without seeming like a dick about it. Deimos didn’t know how she did it. It was a combination of her joking and sarcastic attitude, but also caring and loving words. It made Deimos dizzy. It’s been a while since he’s chatted so long with another individual. 

Mira talked about her troubles as well with Deimos without dumping her feelings and making him feel like shit afterwards. Her father wasn’t the greatest figure and didn’t support her coming to the university. Her friends she’s known for almost a decade all go to the college in town and not the university on the outskirts. She’s tired and time seems to be going way too fast. 

Mira bit into her wrap, which she ordered recently because they’ve been here for more than two hours, and sighed. “Becoming an adult is weird. I don’t want to grow up.”

Deimos chuckled and shrugged. He sipped at his cold iced tea, because once again they’ve been here for more than two hours and got hungry again. “But, hey, you’re away from your parents. You can do whatever you want.”

Mira smiled at him. “To think I’d get positive advice from _Deimos.”_

“Yeah, screw you too.” He crinkled his nose at her and smiled back. It was dark already with the heaters blasting high and the café warm and cozy. It was close to closing hours already with only another couple and a student in the dark and golden place left. 

“What about you? Miss your parents?” Mira asked. 

Deimos paused and chose his words carefully. He didn’t feel like telling her everything yet. They’ve known each other for about five hours (which excluded the ten hours Mira slept). “They’re divorced. Father’s been a dick and mom’s been a saint.” He smirked. “Same boat as you. Older sister’s a pain in the ass.”

Mira gave him a cat-like smile. “We kids with daddy issues have to stick together.”

He rolled his eyes and slumped into his seat. “What the hell is wrong with you,” he laughed. 

She shrugged back. “You’re pretty cool,” she murmured, leaning against the table, closer to his face. Since she took a shower, she smelled like vanilla and cookies and her hair was magnificently puffy. “I like you.”

Deimos’s stomach flipped. 

“Hey, since we both really like movies, you wanna have little movie dates?” She asked happily. “I know a new Marvel movie is coming out soon and none of my friends have time to watch it. My mom was my original movie buddy, but you can work as well.”

Deimos knew Mira was spouting innocent, fluffy shit. But it made every inch of his skin burn with her short little confession. 

“Sure, but you’re paying.”

 

_“Mira! Your stupidly hot university friend is here!”_

Instantly, Mira jolted out of her nap and sat up quickly, which resulted in her spectacularly smashing her head on the bottom of her desk. The noise of a thousand books, pens and pencils jumping from her head’s impact was enough to completely wake her, as well as the throbbing pain on the back of her skull. 

_“Did you die!?”_ Raven, her oldest friend and roommate, hollered. 

Mira whined out and slumped back onto the floor, rubbing her head painfully. She heard the door shut and the murmur of a conversation before two sets of feet approached her room/studio. 

“Holy shit, her place is a mess.”

“The moment winter break started she’s been holed up in this room doing whatever like some stupid monk.”

“Why the fuck is she under her desk?”

“Dunno.”

Mira rolled over and glared at the two individuals at her door. Raven was in the usual grey sweats and messy ponytail while Deimos was bundled up in three layers of jackets, a scarf and fuzzy blue socks. “Don’t talk about me when I’m right here.”

“Why are you under your desk,” Deimos asked again. 

“I was experimenting with glowing paints and this is the darkest spot in the room,” she replied bluntly.

“You fell asleep,” Raven pointed out. The blankets and pillows sprinkled around her desk were solid evidence. 

“The heater is under here as well,” she admitted. 

Deimos let out a bark of a laugh. Raven rolled her eyes and glanced at Mira with a smile. Mira could already predict the jokes and snide remarks she was going to get after he leaves. Slowly like a newborn calf, she wiggled out of her little fort and heaved herself up. Yawning loudly, she nonchalantly walked over to Deimos and slumped against him. He tensed up as she nuzzled her face into his chest, which was ice cold leather, and wrapped her arms around him. 

“Amazing what one night barfing in a stranger’s truck can do,” Raven commented as Deimos proceeded to bicker and pester Mira off. Mira clung on like a leech, snickering at Deimos’ shy but angry reactions. 

“I hate everything about her,” he hissed back at her. 

“Happy New Year’s.” Mira smiled brightly at him. 

“Don’t worry, she’s clingy with everyone,” Raven stated. 

“That doesn’t make me feel better.”

“Hey, at least she cares.” Raven shrugged and sighed. “I’ll leave you two brats to it, I’m tired. Don’t be too loud, Dani and the others are still sleeping.”

“What the hell is wrong with your place, it’s four in the afternoon,” he hissed. 

“We’re all insomniacs,” Mira chuckled, finally unlatching herself to him and promptly flopping onto her bed. Deimos followed, stripping his jacket and lying flat on the mattress beside her. 

“Your house is a frat house,” he commented, staring up at her ceiling covered with stars and hanging planets.

“We’re classy fratboys,” she snickered. 

Deimos rolled his eyes and glanced at her questioning. “Anyway, why’d you want me over?”

Mira flopped beside him and rolled onto her side, smiling brightly at him. “Just wanted to hang out with you.”

“You’ve got four roommates, you don’t need me.”

“Half of them are with their partners all the time and the other half are holed up in their rooms like me,” she muttered sourly. “Also, we’ve got a lot of leftovers from four other moms from Christmas _and_ New Year’s dinner so we’re trying to get rid of some stuff before it gets rotten.”

“What about just freezing the rest?”

“We don’t have enough space in the freezer.”

Deimos rolled his eyes. “We’re watching _Django Unchained_ then.”

 

Deimos didn’t know how he ended up here. It’s only been three weeks of knowing this motherfucker and they’ve gotten to the point where Mira’s cuddled up beside him, head on his shoulder, eating a soggy fry from the vast quantities of leftovers they have. They’ve built their own fort in the living room with six blankets wrapped around them and accumulated a small army of pillows. The coffee table was overflowing with food from leftover turkey to said soggy fries to pumpkin pie paired with a lone can of whip cream. 

How did he get here?

Yesterday he was in Greece with his sister and mother chatting and laughing in front of their fireplace with wine in one hand and cheese and crackers in the other. Her sister, the gremlin she was, somehow had found out Mira’s Instagram account and interrogated him about the post of both of them. (Mira had grabbed him by the neck and yanked him down to her level for a short and sweet selfie. Her cheeks pressed against his and were soft and warm). His mom laughed at Deimos and Juno, his sister, bicker and argue the whole time, congratulating Deimos at the end for finally finding a “friend.” Deimos had specifically said to his mom that they weren’t friends. They hung out five times in the span of a week before he left for two weeks to visit his family in Greece. That wasn’t enough to be called a friend. 

Yet here he was, Mira and Deimos tangled together in the warmth of six layers of blankets. Mira sighed and watched the bloody film unfold in front of her, eyes distant yet touch so close, with the subtle stretches of her legs making Deimos go insane as her legs braided and got between his. She didn’t wear a bra and he could feel her breasts against his arm, and it made his stomach twist and blood boil. Everything about this girl made him crazy. 

Two weeks in Greece was paradise and now he’s back in Hell with this stupid little brat the centre of his pain. 

Licking her fingers clean of the oily French fries she scarfed down, Mira sighed and got up from her spot. She glanced at him, her gaze soft and loving. 

“You want hot chocolate?” She asked softly. 

Deimos paused. She was so close, he could grab the nape of her neck and kiss her. 

“…Sure,” he muttered, adjusting the blankets accordingly so his left side wasn’t cold. Mira smiled at him and hilariously stumbled out of their little fort. Deimos didn’t pay attention to the movie at all and listened to her hum in the kitchen. While the water boiled, she popped back in to check on the movie and grabbed the can of whip cream for the steaming drinks. After the bloodbath of the third act and the ending scene rolled by, Deimos got up and helped Mira clean and pack up the plates of food. Both of them did agree to finish the pie though, and took turns doing shots of whip cream, snickering like children as they licked the cream off their faces. 

“You guys are so domestic,” a new voice commented. A curly redhead appeared from the hallway, pale and tired. 

Deimos shot Mira a questioning look and she responded, “Annie.”

“So this is Deimos you’ve been gushing about,” Annie yawned and sat down at the dinner table. “Nice to meet you, homie.”

Deimos stayed silent, sticking close to Mira as she made their drinks. 

“You would have met him weeks ago if you weren’t hanging out with your boyfriend,” Mira pointed out. “Dani, Raven, Deimos and I had a nice movie marathon without you.”

Deimos wouldn’t call the movie marathon three days after the party “ _nice.”_ It was uncomfortable until Dani and Raven fell asleep and Mira made snide jokes about them. Afterwards Deimos and she walked around the neighbourhood at three in the morning and chatted about aliens and space. Mira was extremely passionate and it rubbed off onto him. 

“Daniel and I had a nice little date,” Annie pointed out. She paused and smirked. “It was similar to the situation happening on the couch a few seconds ago.”

Deimos knew he was blushing and he looked down at the counter. It was an automatic reaction, he didn’t realize how fucking obvious he was being, and Annie laughed. Mira groaned and leaned against the counter, shooting an annoyed stare. 

“So the moment I bring home a guy friend, you guys shove this heteronormativity bullshit down my throat,” she pointed out. “If I brought home a girl, you’d guys just be saying bullshit like, _‘Oh, it’s just gals being palls!’”_

Annie burst out laughing. “Well, you do have a point,” she admitted. “But, you never bring guy friends home. I didn’t even think you had guy friends. Just girl friends and _girlfriends.”_

Mira glanced at him, smirking. “Deimos is different,” she snickered. 

Deimos bit his lip and shoved her. She shoved back, snickering even more. He knew the look she was giving him. Not every guy wears lingerie. 

“Well, now that I think about it, you do have a preference for girls,” Annie thought out loud. 

Mira blushed and laughed. Deimos couldn’t stop staring at her embarrassed smile. Annie egged her on, teasing her relentlessly about the various girls she’s brought home. Surprisingly, Mira was more flirtatious than Deimos thought. 

“There was that one tall butch girl that had amazing thighs,” Annie brought up excitedly. 

Mira’s face went red. She panicked and looked at Deimos with horror. “Annie, _no, shut up-”_

Annie squealed. “And you both were in the kitchen-!” 

Hastily, Mira scrambled over and covered her mouth. Both girls wrestled and giggled, knocking shit over. Deimos awkwardly watched on the sidelines as they fought, noticing how close Mira was with her. She was basically in her lap, face inches from Annie’s, mouth sealed around her lips. She was close with everyone, really. Mira cuddled with Dani and kissed the top of Raven’s head. She didn’t have boundaries. 

“Deimos!” Annie shouted, breaking free of Mira’s grip. “Be careful with this girl! She’ll get between any nice thighs and eat-!”

_“Holy fuck, Annie, shut UP!”_ Mira screamed in horror, covering her mouth roughly. Annie laughed and licked her hands, the other girl recoiling in disgust and wiping her spit on Annie’s shirt. Thankfully, Annie had finished teasing Mira, and got up to go take a hot shower. Mira kicked her hard in the ass for payback, her face bright red. 

“Ignore whatever bullshit Annie said,” Mira mumbled, rubbing her neck nervously. 

Deimos just stared at her, feeling heat wash over his face. 

He absolutely was _not_ thinking about Mira between his thighs. 

 

“It’s fucking snowing, why the hell did I agree to this.”

“Because you love me, Deimos.”

“I fucking hate your guts.”

“Well, then because it’s our last day of freedom before classes start tomorrow.”

“And your idea of fun is to go on a hike?”

“It’s not a hike, we’re barely in the mountains.”

“It’s fucking cold as shit, Mira.”

Mira swirled around and glared at Deimos. He glared back at her, his face red from the cold and half of it hidden with his red scarf wrapped around his face, neck and shoulders. The big puffy jacket made him look pregnant and his black jeans didn’t help him keep warm at all. They were on a pretty trodden path so their boots weren’t soaked yet, but it was pretty slippery and from the wet stains on his ass, Deimos had fallen at least three times. Mira on the other hand had taken an outdoor class and was prepared for a light walk up a sad excuse of a mountain. Expensive hiking boots, thick jacket, three layers, mittens, backpack, hot packs, she had everything. 

Calmly, she took off her glove and held out her hand. 

Deimos made a face. 

“What?” Mira said bluntly. 

_“What?”_ Deimos said back, gesturing to her hand. 

“I’ve got a limited amount of hot packs so your left hand can have one, my right hand can have one and we’ll have to share the last one,” she stated. Deimos still stared at her. Sighing, she tossed him the little pack for his left hand and grabbed his right one, shoving it into her left pocket that was already warm from the hot pack. Deimos’ hand was ice cold and she laced their fingers together, thumb rubbing his knuckles. 

“What the hell, you’re on fire,” he commented, breaking the other hot pack for his opposite hand. 

“You’re so cold,” she laughed. 

“I am and I vote we fucking leave and crawl under some blankets or something.” 

“That’s one way to get me to sleep with you,” Mira teased, wiggling her eyebrows. 

“I hate you.”

She snickered and hip bumped him. 

“Seriously though, why are we hiking,” he grumbled after a long period of silence. They approached a steep incline and Mira walked slowly, keeping her long and tall companion safe and free from slipping. 

“There’s gonna be a supermoon tonight,” she said excitedly. “And no one else wanted to come with me to go see it.”

“ _We’re going to be here all night?”_ He groaned. 

“It’s dark around four, we’re going to be here for two hours, calm down,” she whined. “And don’t worry, when we get to our spot, I’ll light a fire and we can have dinner.”

“So that’s why you brought this stupid bag,” he commented. 

“You’re so fucking rude, you know that,” she hissed. 

Deimos smirked and hip bumped her. 

After another long stretch of straight walking and one little trek upwards that Deimos overreacted about, they got to their little campsite that already looked lived in. The snow was packed down from previous visitors and a fire pit was already established. The moment the fire was lit, Deimos sat on it shivering. Mira joined him after she got some hot chocolate out of her pack as well as a blanket they wrapped around themselves. By the time Deimos stopped shaking and was drowsily sipping his third cup, it was dark and the sky cleared. They roasted hot dogs by the fire, listening to it sizzle as the stars started to appear above them and the moon began to peek from the mountains. 

“See, this isn’t that bad,” she commented as she bit into her juicy hotdog. 

“You Canadians and your camping,” he muttered sourly. He stabbed on his second hotdog and shoved it into the flames. “It’s fucking cold out here.” 

Mira sighed and wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him closer. He took it immediately and cuddled close, sniffling and resting his cheek on her head. 

“God, why are you so warm,” he commented. Mira laughed and rubbed his back. 

After dinner was finished and they moved onto marshmallows (because it wouldn’t be complete without marshmallows), Deimos and Mira ended up playing stupid lazy games like two truths and a lie and fuck, marry, kill. 

“Ok,” Mira hummed, “Captain America, Captain Marvel and Captain Mar-Vell.”

Deimos laughed. “Are you serious?”

“Absolutely.”

He sighed, wrapping an arm around Mira’s waist and joining his hands back to his warm mug. Mira was basically on his lap now, Deimos’ face nuzzled in her neck. It would be romantic if it weren’t for the fact that she was being treated like Deimos’ personal heat warmer. 

“Fuck Captain America, marry Captain Marvel and kill Captain Mar-Vell,” he said after a long time of pondering. 

“I’d marry Captain America and fuck Marvel,” Mira commented. 

“Captain Marvel is hot though,” he pointed out. 

“So is America.”

“Yeah, but he’ll love America more than you,” Deimos rebutted. 

Mira hummed in agreement. 

“Black Panther, Black Canary and Black Widow,” Deimos said for the next round. 

Mira snickered, noticing the pattern that she started. “Man, they’re all great.”

“Stop stalling, I already know your type,” he snickered. 

Mira rolled her eyes. “Yes, Black Widow is fucking hot, but if we’re thinking about it logically, she’s untrustworthy. She is a double agent. So I’d love to bang Black Widow. Black Canary is super hot too, but Black Panther is so hot as well.”

“Who are you going to marry, Mira?”

Mira hummed, gnawing her lip. “Black Panther. He’s got the body of a god.” 

“You just want him to wear cat ears,” Deimos teased. 

Hotly, Mira turned around and glared at him. She was taken aback by how close they were but kept her ground, ignoring this twisting feeling in her gut. “Deimos, I’m going to elbow you in the gut.”

He sneered, his smile beautiful. “You’re not denying it.”

“Do you wanna go, bro?”

Deimos set down his mug and Mira did as well, snickering as she did. Before she could tickle him, he slipped off the log they sat on and rolled back. Mira fell on her ass and immediately scrambled up to lunge at him. He side-stepped out of the way and almost fell over as he met the freshly-fallen snow near a clearing in the trees and Mira ventured after him. Deimos’ laughter echoed through the night, bright and bubbly, warm and boisterous. He wheezed and died when they got into deep snow and Mira fell straight to the bottom, stuck in a pickle as Deimos ran away from her with his gangly long legs. 

“You asshole! Get back here!” She shouted, hoisting her up and finding a rhythm in wading through the snow. However, she did slip up again and fell face-first, Deimos’ hysterical laughter even louder. Hotly, Mira looked at him. 

Deimos was out in the clearing, untouched white snow gleaming in the moonlight. He clutched onto his stomach, mouth stretched wide in a freeing smile as he laughed into the night. His whole body was lit silver in the milky light, Deimos some sort of mystical mountain spirit underneath the yellow moon and sparkling stars. For a moment, Mira fell in love with the sight. It was something out of a movie. Deimos standing there, his eyes full of tears, his lips stretched into a loving smile, the snow gleaming and glittering around him. 

“I c-can’t-!” He wheezed when Mira finally dragged herself out of the trees and into the moon-lit clearing. 

“You’re such a dick,” she hissed, quickly packing a small snowball and whacking it hard at him. He shielded himself and laughed it off, hastily building an army for himself. Mira did as well, quicker than him and pelted him hard, getting closer and closer to him until they were a foot apart and Mira lunged straight at him. They tumbled into the soft snow, wrestling and shoving snow down each other’s shirts, both screaming and cursing as they did until eventually they tired themselves out. Gasping and panting with their breaths white puffs dissipating into the cold air, they laid on their backs staring at the stars and incredibly large moon. 

“It’s like we’re on a different planet,” Mira sighed, finally regaining her breath. 

“Yeah,” Deimos muttered, enamoured by the twinkling stars. “The moon is so big.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“It is.”

They were silent for a while, just staring at the stars. 

“Forests are magical,” Mira murmured. “It’s like anything can happen in them.”

“Time doesn’t feel relevant,” Deimos added. 

“Anything could be hiding.”

“Anyone could be watching.”

“Forests are full of what-ifs,” Mira whispered, a smile on her face. “What if did see a figure? What if the trees can hear me? What if I’m not alone?”

“Forests are magical,” Deimos repeated. 

“There’s no patterns in them, there’s no symbols to decipher. It’s just curves and swirls,” she muttered. “The dancing lines on bark, the swirling of rivers, the curves of paths.”

“Every little part of the forest tells a story,” he replied. “Those etches on the bark, the fallen tree in the river, every little path made in the snow…”

“The forests are always changing with the seasons. Some trees will fall, some rivers were dry up, some grasses will burn. There’s an impermanence with the forests…something you don’t get with cities. The brick building you walk by will keep on standing in wind, rain or shine. The roads you drive along won’t change one season and curve a little to the right or widen. The air isn’t as clean, the sky isn’t so…beautiful.”

Mira heard Deimos move beside her. She glanced at him, her heart beating fast as his gaze settled on her. 

“Mira, I’m bisexual,” he said calmly. “My father left my family after knowing that I liked boys.”

Mira was silent for a while, gazing into his olive green eyes. He closed them and breathed in deeply. “You’re the first person who hasn’t judged me for what I like.” His voice was low. “And for that, I’m thankful.” 

“You’re welcome,” she muttered softly. “I’m pansexual.”

“Cool,” he said with a little smile. 

_“Cool,”_ she repeated with a wider grin. 

They were quiet for a while. 

Slowly, Mira wrapped her arms around Deimos and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back, sighing shakily and relaxing in her embrace. 


	3. White Lingerie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mira is lonely often

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning:  
> Dubious consent

Deimos scrubbed the shit out of his eyes when he opened his door. Mira was standing in front of him, eyes bloodshot and back slouched. She sniffled, cheeks red from the cold, and adjusted the strap of her backpack that was slipping off her shoulder. 

“What,” he yawned. 

“I’ve got a class at three and I want to sleep,” she stated bluntly. 

“I do too,” he glared at her. He was up until four last night trying to finish his first essay of the second term. “But I’m not?”

“Deimos, just let me in. I woke up at seven this morning for a stupid nine o’clock class,” she grumbled. “And I even climbed up this stupidly long hill to get to your apartment. _Let me in.”_

Deimos rolled his eyes and stepped out of the way for her. Immediately, she trudged in and dropped her bag in front of his door and slipped off her boots. Yawning, Deimos drowsily walked back to his bed while Mira threw off her jacket. Calmly, he slipped into his sheets and seconds later was welcomed by another warm body who knocked the fuck out the moment she rested her head against his pillow. Annoyed, Deimos tried to wiggle away from her, but Mira was curled up close to him to the point where the only comfortable solution was to wrap his arm around her waist and hold her tight. If he wasn’t so tired, he’d be embarrassed. But seconds after he also fell right back to sleep. 

 

Mira and Raven came back from grocery shopping and was welcomed by a body snoozing on their couch. They exchanged skeptical looks, expecting to see Annie’s boyfriend curled up in the mountain of blankets on the couch, but were met with Deimos sleeping like a baby boy. He hugged one of Mira’s homemade pillows, his face squished against it, features soft and young. 

“Holy shit,” Mira whispered. “How did he get in?”

Raven paused and gasped. “I might have jokingly told Dani and Annie to go give Deimos a spare key since he hangs out here a lot.”

_“Raven,”_ Mira hissed softly. 

She backed off and shrugged dramatically. “Hey! Dude, I thought you guys were a thing! Annie and Sophie’s partners have spare keys so I just _thought_ Deimos _deserves_ one too!” 

“We’re not a _thing!”_ Mira whined. She shoved her and she gave her an apologetic (not really) smile. 

Suddenly, Deimos shifted and immediately Mira shoved Raven into the kitchen and away from him. 

“Are you guys at least banging?” Raven asked. 

“Are fucking kidding me,” Mira whined into her hands. “ _No,_ Raven, we’re not.”

“But you guys stick together so much it’s gross.” Raven quirked an eyebrow at her. “You stayed over at Deimos’ place for a solid week last week.”

“That’s because I was working on projects at the university!” Mira whined. “The busses stop at midnight so it’s just easier to work on them until three in the morning and recuperate at his place afterwards!”

“Oh, come _on Mira, stop with the bullshit,”_ Raven complained. “He is totally your type!”

Mira blushed hard. _“Raven!”_

“Greaser-looking bad boy, leather jackets, ripped jeans, raspy voice, thick eyebrows- he checks every box and then some! Greek god-looking?! Beautiful olive green eyes!” Raven hissed. “He _even swears in Greek you know you love that-”_

“Raven! He’s just a friend! He’s super important to me and being in a relationship with him would be so forced,” Mira snapped. The only reason they’re friends is because Mira knows about his little lingerie secret. And she barfed in his car and is trying to make up for that. And he doesn’t have many friends and Mira wants to change that. And he’s a great guy. 

Raven sighed and crossed her arms. “So if I started flirting and potentially dating him, you would be ok with that?” 

Mira made a face and dug her own grave. Raven’s eyes sparkled. 

_“See?!”_ She jabbed a finger in Mira’s face. “You hate that idea!”

“Raven.”

“Mira,” she shot back. “I’ve seen you jump from person to person, Deimos is the first guy you’ve ever stuck your neck out for.”

“That’s because he’s amazing,” she argued. “He’s…great.”

“And I want you to be happy and not lonely anymore,” Raven stated, crossing her arms. “Everyone is finding their special someone and you need to at least give him some thought.”

“He doesn’t see me that way.” Mira shook her head. “I’m just a little brat who looks like a baby boy.”

“Mira, you’re very cute and pretty. You have no idea what you can do to someone,” Raven said calmly. Mira stared at her, shocked. Her face flushed red. Feelings she’s tried to lock away for years came bubbling up. 

“…What are you saying?” Mira said shakily. Suddenly, she was hyper aware of how close Raven was. Mira was basically pinned to the fridge and her. 

Raven realized what she had said too. Her expression changed and she averted her eyes. 

“…Raven?” Mira tipped her head. 

“Mira, _no,”_ she shook her head hastily. Her hands said otherwise and slid up her forearm. Mira met them, sliding her hand into hers. Suddenly, Raven yanked her hands back. 

“Raven,” Mira repeated, harder this time. “Raven, look at me.”

Her bronze eyes met her. Somehow, Raven looked incredibly beautiful in this moment. Mira’s heart quickened. 

“What did you say?” Mira asked again. 

Raven sighed and shook her head. “We’ve discussed this, Mira.”

_“Raven.”_

She flinched from Mira’s steely voice. She sighed and rubbed her face. “Sometimes I do find myself infatuated by you.”

Mira’s heart was about to burst. 

“But that still doesn’t change the fact that I can’t see myself being in a relationship with you,” she muttered. “Mira, we’ve known each other for ten years, if I felt something, I’d already made my move.”

The shorter girl was silent. She still couldn’t stop but be enamoured by Raven’s beautiful eyes. 

“It’s just…I wouldn’t be jealous if you dated Deimos. I have felt angry before about you hooking up with people, but that’s because they were sleazy people. Deimos and some others? Never felt jealous because I don’t see you that way,” she explained shakily. “But you reacting so…like _that_ about just the thought of Deimos and I dating? Don’t you see that you like him?”

“I made a face like _that_ because I like you!” She snapped angrily. That wasn’t a lie. But it wasn’t the truth as well. Mira didn’t know why she was being so persistent. She didn’t know why she was so angry. It might be because of how easily Raven can see through her. It might be just out of spite. 

“Mira, stop, it’s been three years and I still have no romantic attraction to you,” Raven said evenly. She wasn’t going to put up with Mira’s bullshit. Mira wouldn’t either. She’s being too persistent. Too obsessive. Too needy. 

She was just…lonely. 

Lonely and desperate to find any broken link, any hint from anyone to feel something. 

Mira grabbed Raven’s collar and pulled her into a bruising kiss. 

 

Deimos was going to invite Mira for dinner when he woke up. It was the most he could do since he was crashing at her place uninvited. His apartment was nice, but it was still incredibly small and lonely sometimes. After spending day after day, week after week, month after month with someone, the times they’re apart gets lonelier. Not that Deimos would ever admit that he liked spending time with Mira. 

But, at this moment, he wished he hadn’t come. 

Deimos stood in front of Mira and Raven. Mira, pinned between Raven and the fridge. Raven, currently forced into a deep kiss with Mira. 

Deimos has never seen such an…emotional expression from Mira. She kissed her with bruising passion, hands holding Raven’s collar shaking and cheeks splashed in pink. For a moment, Deimos thought Raven was going to deepen the kiss, but instead ripped herself from Mira’s grasp and slapped her hard across the face. She rubbed her lips and hotly stomped away, her angered expression faltering for a moment to shock and horror when she realized Deimos witnessed the whole thing. Still, she clicked back to rage, embarrassed rage now, and stomped to her room and slammed the door. 

Mira stood still, leaning against the fridge for a solid minute that felt like decades. Then, ever so slowly she slid down it and crumpled to the floor. Deimos heard her sniffle and whimper. He could feel his heart break in half. 

Head in her hands, shoulders bunched up, body curled into a ball, Mira began to cry. 

Deimos didn’t know what to do. There was no right answer to making her feel better in this situation. Did he even have the right to talk to her? Touch her? Make her feel better? This was a personal problem that was between Mira and Raven only. 

Soundlessly, Deimos knelt down beside Mira and as gently as possible placed his hand on her shoulder. Instantly, Mira looked up at him. His guts twisted into painful knots seeing her crying face. Her swollen eyes, her quivering lip. 

Deimos pulled her into a hug. He was speechless, a painful lump forming in his throat. Just looking at her made him want to cry. The most he could do is hug her. He didn’t have any words that could express how he felt about her. Just a hug. Just his warmth had to suffice. 

Mira immediately took him, shaking and sobbing into his shoulder like a frightened child. She seemed smaller in her arms, fragile and weak. It took a while for her to calm down, but when she did, she got up quickly, dizzy still, and mumbled them to leave the house. She didn’t feel comfortable being here. 

For an hour, Deimos and Mira sat in his truck, Deimos calmly holding her as she sobbed into his chest. For an hour, Deimos listened to her whimper and sniffle and break down. He was witnessing a side he’s never seen before. A side that was so raw, so natural, so instinctual. He was seeing Mira. There were no walls she had built up, there were no layers for her to hide behind. It was just _Mira,_ sobbing and wailing in his old truck. 

Eventually, she calmed down to the point where Deimos felt it was ok to drive. One hand was clutched to the steering wheel and the other laced into Mira’s small hand. He drove over to the nearest gas station and grabbed a cup of hot tea and cookies for the both of them. 

Mira clutched onto her warm cup shakily, sniffling and tearing up still when Deimos put the truck into parking and killed the engine. Gently, he zipped off his jacket and gave it to her. Then, he waited for her to finally calm down to drink and eat. It took a few minutes, but eventually she stopped crying, and she shoved Oreos into her mouth and chugged down her hot tea. 

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “Fuck, this is so stupid.”

“Don’t be sorry,” he replied instantly. “Don’t ever be sorry of feeling sad.”

“You’re so good to me, you know that?” 

“You’re better,” he said calmly. Not for a second has Mira ever made Deimos feel like shit for who he is. Every second they’re together, Mira has loved every inch of his body, and every thought and word he’s spoken. Mira has accepted all his flaws and still loved him for who he is. 

“I don’t deserve you,” she laughed, wiping away another tear. “I’m a horrible human being.”

“I can’t see that.”

Mira glanced at him. “I’ve been pining for my best friend for ten years. I’m stubborn and sleazy and needy and stupid-”

“Mira, stop,” Deimos warned. He slid closer, hesitantly touching her shaking hands. “Yes, you’re flawed, but everyone is. Obviously it’s going to take a while for you to forget about Raven, you’ve liked her for ten years. It might take you ten years to finally get over her. It might take you ten days. You’ve got to accept it first though, to move on.”

“It’s so _fucking hard_ ,” she whimpered. “I know I’m being unreasonable. I know I’m being petty. B-But-” Mira was crying again. “I-I’m just so lonely all the time and Raven has always been there for me.”

Deimos bit his lip and slipped his hands to Mira’s cheeks. She sniffled and stilled her shaking as Deimos wiped away her tears with his thumb. Slowly, he leaned in and kissed her forehead. Sighing, he knocked their foreheads together, his nose brushing hers. 

“I’m here for you,” he muttered. 

Mira frowned and bit her lip hard. She lunged herself at him and buried herself into his embrace. 

“How did I ever find you?” She whimpered. 

“By barging in on me changing and barfing in my car.”

She laughed, her giggles making his head swirl. 

For a while, Deimos leaned against the car door while rubbing Mira’s back in circles. She muttered stories from when Raven and her were young, revealing everything to Deimos whether he liked it or not. It felt like deja vu from the night at the party, except this time Mira wasn’t drunk. 

“She was my first in everything,” Mira sniffled. Her eyes were closed, hands clutched onto his shirt, her body leaning against his chest. “When we were kids, she stole my first kiss. When we were teenagers, we took each other’s virginity. We were stupid and naïve, experimenting with each other’s bodies… I felt something, she felt nothing.

“I confessed to her on her sixteenth birthday and she rejected me a month later. I’ve…tried to ignore the feelings that I felt that day…tried to block it out of my memory…tried to suffocate these feelings. I reached out to the nearest person to feel something. Some of them treated me well…others were just a warm body…”

Mira told Deimos everything. 

“When I was sixteen and I realized I like boys, I did the same,” he muttered. “I reached out for one of my best friends and for a solid week, we locked ourselves into a room and explored our bodies. After that week was over…he moved away. I tried to keep in touch with him, but his last message from him was saying we could never talk again. He didn’t want to feel what he felt in that week. He liked girls.”

Deimos told some things. 

“Loneliness just infects you like a virus,” Mira muttered. “It’s just one thought, one feeling that slowly multiplies and consumes you whole until you’re nothing but an empty shell. Loneliness takes hold of every thought and emotion you have and controls them. It makes you do things you regret, it makes you feel things you never wanted to feel ever again…”

Mira doesn’t realize how poetic she can be. How beautiful she is. How talented and loved she is. Everyone and everything around her is filled with warmth. She’s so rich in love. Even though Raven and Mira will go through a rough bump in the upcoming weeks, Raven will still love and care for her. Her friends won’t shun her. Her peers won’t hate her. The world will still love her. 

Someone new will take Raven’s place. Someone new will make her feel butterflies and steal her gaze. Someone new will take her time. Someone new will taste her lips and feel her warmth. Someone new will touch her and kiss her and hug her and make her feel good. Someone new will see her for who she truly is and take every inch of her. 

“You deserve happiness, Mira,” Deimos muttered. 

She looked up at him, eyes wide. 

“You’re a good person and deserve love,” he stated calmly. “You deserve the stars and the moon and the sunshine.”

Mira looked at him. She _looked_ at him. 

 

Mira walked out of the shower, her eyes swollen, head throbbing and body stiff. She wanted to sleep for centuries. Deimos stood in front of his dresser, absent-mindedly slipping on a shirt. He was wearing a white bralette underneath and the sight took her aback for a second. Deimos has changed in front of her before, it’s been a more than a month of hanging out and camping at his place, but in this moment, in Mira’s fragile state, the sight of Deimos wearing a bralette underneath his tank top seemed foreign. She’s seen him cook noodles wearing a lace bralette. She’s walked in when he’s just in boxers and a velvet red bra. She’s slept with him in a soft babydoll. She’s always just passed it off as normal. 

Yet, in this moment, Deimos looked sexy. 

Sensuous. 

His eyes landed on her, Mira wearing his boxers and smallest t-shirt, standing quietly and staring straight back at him. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked. 

When did he ever understand how Mira felt? When did Mira ever understand how he felt? When did she understand the expression he wore was genuine? When did she understand the twitch of his lip meant he was stressed? When did he ever understand her little quirks? 

Slowly, Mira walked over to him. 

She knew she was freaking him out. She knew it in the way his eyes darted from side to side, from how he backed himself up the wall. He knew what she was thinking as well, and he stopped breathing when Mira stepped right in front of him, hand on his chest. 

Calmly, she lifted up his black shirt, revealing the soft, olive skin underneath and his lace bralette. Mira pulled his shirt all the way up, her hand feeling Deimos’ quickened heartbeat, and stared at the bralette he wore. It was see-through and thin, his pink nipples, perked and hard from the cold air between them. Deimos’ chest rose and fell quickly, his breath quick and stunted. He said nothing to Mira as she stared at his chest. 

Then, ever so gently, she slid her hand up his stomach to his chest, feeling how his soft skin transitioned to lace. He jolted from her touch, a gasp escaping his lips. His skin was hot. The lace was rough. If it were Mira, it would irritate her nipples. The rough fabric would keep rubbing against them and drive her insane. Did he like that sensation? Fabric and roughness, ghosting across his sensitive tips, rubbing his buttons with every move he made? Was it exciting sitting in class, wearing a bralette, feeling the fabric tease him like invisible fingers? 

Gently, Mira slid her finger over one of Deimos’ perked nipples. She rolled the little nip around, feeling how hard it was, wondering in awe if this one little button could bring him to his knees with enough teasing. He flinched again, silent this time, but he breathed harder. Mira didn’t look at Deimos’ expression once, entranced by the swirling patterns on the lace, and how good the bralette looked on Deimos’ skin. Once again, she brushed his nipple with the tips of her finger, Deimos’ body absolutely still this time. She did it again and again, switching from the right to the left, her touches barely meeting his skin. His nipples seemed to get harder and harder, and she teased them by tugging at the bralette and making the rough fabric brush against his sensitive tips. For a solid minute, she teased one nipple, flicking it playfully and swirling her finger around it in circles. Deimos was shaking underneath her touch, his body tense and trembling now from Mira’s suggestive touches. She placed her hand flat on his chest and rubbed upwards, feeling his nipple on the palm of her hand and massaged it slowly. Eventually, she let go of his shirt and slipped both hands underneath, teasing and touching both his nipples, feeling how hard they were with her seductive touches. 

With the shirt covering his alluring bralette, Mira finally looked at Deimos. 

His face was splashed in red and lips bruised from biting them so hard. His eyes were half-lidded and gaze burning, animalistic and hungry. It made Mira’s heart skip a beat. He licked his lips, slowly blinking at her and swallowed thickly, his kissable Adam’s apple bobbing as he did so. Mira memorized this face. The contours of his cheeks, the furrowing of his eyebrows, the discolouration in his lips, the redness of his skin, the need in his eyes. She’s never seen such an expression. Deimos was turned on. He was infatuated. He liked what Mira was doing. 

Staring straight at him, Mira slid her hands up his chest again and pinched his nipples suddenly. He clicked out of his heated trance and grabbed the nearby curtain, a moan escaping his lips. It was erotic. He was erotic. _He liked this._

Mira let him ride off the first wave of pleasure slowly, teasing his nipples in circles with the pads of her thumb gently. Then, however, she increased the pressure until she was rubbing them hard in bruising circles like what she does with her clit. Deimos reacted the way she did, crumpling a little and moaning again. His face got even redder. 

_“F-fuck,”_ he whimpered out. Mira swallowed hard, almost breathless from how erotic Deimos was. 

Blood roared in her ears and she slowly lifted up his shirt again. This time, Deimos grabbed the ends and pulled it up for her, leaving both her hands free to explore every inch of his skin. She pulled down his bralette and let his nipples feel the cool air. They were swollen and large from being teased before. Mira let go of the fabric and it snapped into place. She admired how poignant his nipples were against the white bralette, how easily it was to tease him with the tips of her nail. The gentlest brush of her nail on his nipple made him go insane, the pleasure heightened and doubled as he awaited her next move. 

Drunk off just the intoxicated expression Deimos gave Mira, the girl leaned in and blew cold air on his nipples. He whimpered, high-pitched and deliciously sweet. Then, ever so slowly, she licked up his chest and nipples, tasting him and feeling the rough fabric against her skin. She swirled her tongue around his perked button, rolling it in her mouth like a sweet little candy. Deimos suddenly whimpered and swore in Greek, leaning and shaking against the wall. How sensitive was he? 

Mira lifted her mouth from her little pink treat, strings of spit connecting them together still and peered up at the boy. Deimos’ delicious lips were parted and he gasped shakily, taken aback by Mira’s smouldering stare. She kissed between his chest and went back to his wet nipple, barely touching it with the tip of her tongue. Deimos’s legs shook and she realized the throbbing hard-on between his legs. Her heart kicked into full gear, ramming against her ribcage. 

_“F-Fuck, M-Mira,”_ Deimos groaned as she teased him once again with the tip of her tongue. He clutched onto the curtains tight and doubled over when Mira bit his left nipple playfully. A high-pitched gasped escaped him and the noise made Mira wet. Softly, she kissed every inch of his chest and bralette, tasting him on her lips as she did, feeling his warmth and smelling him as well. She couldn’t help herself but add dark bruises near his nipples, pleasuring one spot extremely close to his nipple with her lips and tongue to make Deimos go insane. With one flick, he was down. With one lick, he whimpered out. With one hard suck, he called out Mira’s name. 

Entranced by such a powerful and muscular body taken down with just her fingers and lips, Mira licked up one nipple and with the other hand, played with the other, pushing and teasing his dripping nipple with her cold saliva. Deimos covered his mouth but a needy whine came out, urging Mira to flick teasingly at the perked button. 

Mira worshiped his body. She explored every inch of his torso with calculated precision, recording every noise and shiver Deimos made from her touch and kisses alone. She licked every millimetre of his nipples, pleasuring and tasting and worshiping him as if he was a god. 

As her lips bit and sucked at Deimos’ red and swollen nipples, her hands wandered lower. At one point, she had spread his legs open and rubbed her right thigh in between, making the male involuntarily jut to her fleeting touches. Her hands slipped to his groin and felt his erection beneath his sweatpants, throbbing and hard, and she searched further back to his round ass. Mira couldn’t help but squeeze him, feeling how soft and full he was. Deimos gasped and whimpered, finally succumbing to Mira’s touches let all the shakes, shivers and sounds he tried to suppress free. 

Mira was breathless taking down such a beast as him. 

Slowly, she massaged Deimos’ ass in circles, grabbing every inch of him and spreading him open. He reacted wonderfully to Mira’s obsessive touches and cursed loudly in Greek. Sucking in a shaky breath, she slipped her hand in the middle of his ass and rubbed carefully, gaging the reaction she’d get. 

Deimos loved every second of it. 

He groaned and moaned and grinded to Mira’s fingers, egging her further to his entrance. Mira couldn’t breathe and she could see stars. She lifted her lips from his nipples and stared at him. He looked like he was going to pass out of sheer pleasure. He looked _sexy._

Mira wanted to kiss him. 

Slowly, she retracted her hands from his clothed entrance and slipped higher up to the hem of his pants. For only a second, she slipped underneath his pants and felt lace. 

_He was wearing panties._

_“Stop,”_ Deimos gasped suddenly. His voice was high and breathy, his entire face red as a tomato. Roughly, he shoved Mira off. He covered his mouth and avoided looking at her. He muttered something in Greek and Mira didn’t understand. Whatever he said, it broke Mira’s heart. He sounded like he was about to cry. 

“I’m sorry,” Mira said immediately. She had broken out of her infatuated trance and realized what she had just done. “Oh my god, Deimos, _I’m so sorry.”_

“N-no, it’s not what you think.” He shook his head. He looked lost and he looked everywhere but Mira’s stare. “I-I don’t want to do something that you’ll regret.”

Mira knows that she would never regret doing _this._

“You’re in a fragile state, a-and I know you know that as well,” he continued. He breathed in deeply and exhaled. “Today…tonight just isn’t the time.”

“I…understand,” Mira nodded. She tried to seem understanding and compassionate but she knew the smile she wore barely masked up the loneliness she felt. Yes, she knew her actions were just to feel the heat of another. She was in an emotionally weakened state after her bout with Raven. But…her actions also felt different compared to all the others. It felt…familiar. Something she’s fantasized about before. Something that’s nagged at the back of her mind before. Something she’s wanted to do for a while. 

“You can sleep in my bed, I’ll take the floor,” he murmured softly. 

“No, Deimos, it’s your home, I can’t-”

“Mira, take it,” he sighed. “For me, ok?”

She gnawed on her lip and nodded slowly. Deimos ran his hand shakily through his hair and passed her quickly. He walked straight into his washroom and locked the door. A few seconds later, he turned on the shower even though he had showered before Mira. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> spicy stuff  
> more spicier stuff to come  
> the tags are gonna change hella soon


	4. University Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mira and Deimos forget about everything because school's a thing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess what it's 2AM and more split-decisions

Raven was waiting at the door when Deimos dropped Mira off. She looked imposing, angry and tired all at the same time. She crossed her arms when Mira hopped out of Deimos’ car, Deimos following after her. 

“It’s been two weeks,” Raven said calmly when both individuals walked up to her. Previously, Mira asked Deimos to come with her because she couldn’t handle it alone. Deimos would walk straight into Hell with her. 

“I needed time,” Mira murmured, eyes glued on her shoes. She breathed in and sighed slowly. “I’m sorry.”

Raven glanced at Deimos. It was a look of skepticism. A look of empathy. A look that held a million different meanings yet all meant the same thing. 

_“Thank you for being there for her.”_

“Come inside, we’ll talk,” Raven gently said to Mira. The shorter girl nodded slowly and looked to Deimos. 

Something weird in him felt compelled to kiss the top of her head. She smelled like his shampoo. 

Then the door shut on him. 

For a moment, he listened to the two girls on the other side. 

_“Raven, I’ve been such an asshole, I’m so sorry I kissed you.”_

_“Mira, it’s ok. I shouldn’t have hit you-”_

_“No, I deserved it. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I should have respected your wishes and treated you fairly-”_

Deimos turned back and walked over to his car. Just as he was going to unlock it, a hand grabbed his shoulder. Annie stared up at him blankly. 

“How are they?” She asked calmly. 

Deimos paused, shocked. “They’re talking.”

Annie sighed. “Good.” She glanced uneasily at her home. “I saw you guys arrive and didn’t want to walk into something so awkward. You wanna get coffee or something? I don’t want to really impede on their conversation.”

Deimos sighed. Two weeks had passed full of sexual tension and awkwardness between Mira and him. He just wanted to lie in bed, probably smell Mira in his sheets, and sleep for a million years. After Mira’s little episode, Deimos hasn’t been able to put on a bralette without thinking about her. He just wanted to die. 

“Fine,” he said gruffly. 

As expected, Annie brought her to the usual café in the usual dim booth spot. Annie held their spots as Deimos headed to the counter to order the usual drinks. He wasn’t in the mood to drink anything right now, but also in the mood to drink everything right now. He wanted to feel warm. He just didn’t want to be cold anymore. While he waited in the line, he compromised and decided to get green tea to help ease his nerves and a black coffee for Annie (because she was a monster). The usual barista with the lip piercing was making the drinks today, and he smiled at Deimos while he waited in line, but he seemed to also have a little shadow that followed him around as he went. Well, a “little shadow” seemed like an understatement. The trainee was tall, taller than barista dude and around the same height as Deimos. He looked a little lost when Deimos came up to counter and he went slowly to be sure the trainee didn’t mess up. 

He was kind of beautiful, the trainee. 

Caramel skin. Sharp, almond-shaped golden eyes. Thick, curly black hair. A nice undercut. Great arms. Slender fingers. They met eyes and he immediately looked back at the screen. Mira does that as well. He bit his lip while he tapped in Deimos’ order and fumbled a bit when he rang in the cash. Mira would probably do stupid shit like that too. Everything about this café reminded him of her. The baristas. The smell. The lighting. 

When Deimos walked over to the little pick-up counter for his drinks, he watched the baristas make quick work behind the scenes, watching how the lip piercing barista soared across the counter making drink after drink. The trainee could barely keep up and he accidentally spilled milk over his black pants. 

“Are you ok?” Deimos asked quickly. The trainee shook his head vigorously. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he stuttered out. 

The more experienced one told him to go change in the back. The drinks were fine and eventually Deimos came back to the usual booth. For a moment, he forgot why he even came to the café, the trainee’s little mess up making him forget about Mira completely. Annie smiled when he slid her coffee to him. 

“Mira and Raven have always had a tense relationship,” she murmured as she sipped her drink. She got right to the point. “I hope this can be the last time.”

“This has happened multiple times?” 

Annie nodded and sighed. “Too many times. They love each other. Sometimes the line blurs and they end up arguing. Usually they try to forget it, supress it, lock it away and never mention it again. But, after doing that millions of times, one day it’s just all going to burst and overflow,” she rambled. 

“Then what makes this so different?” Deimos frowned. 

Annie looked at him. “You’re here.”

 

Mira knocked on Deimos’ door. Surprisingly, he opened up pretty quickly. 

“Holy shit,” he blurted out. 

Mira knew she looked like a mess. Paint smeared across her overalls, strings of glue in her hair, dead-eyed expression. The ultimate starving art student look. 

“I know I look disgusting, please let me in,” she said calmly. She hoisted up her backpack full of supplies for the upcoming nights. 

“How long are you staying?”

“Three weeks.”

_“Three weeks?”_

“Deimos, please,” she whined. “It’s the end of the school year and all the major projects are due. I need to be in the Visual Arts building as long as possible and you know that the busses stop running at twelve.”

He rubbed his neck nervously. Mira tried not to think of the Incident that happened a few months ago. They’ve been on good terms since, not mentioning, not even hinting at something as intimate as that. Not that they could really even do something like that again. Raven and Mira both needed time to heal, and that meant time to themselves and not hanging out with anyone. It’s been a while since Mira’s done this, and she’s not completely comfortable with the situation as well even though she’s instigating it. 

But screw her relationship with Deimos, she needed to worry about her grades. 

“Did you bring a sleeping bag?” He asked. Mira hoisted up her huge hiking backpack. 

“I brought a sleeping pad as well.”

“Jesus Christ, fine. You’re paying for food though.”

 

Deimos sighed, staring hard at his laptop screen, one leg bouncing and shaking the whole desk. He ran his hands nervously through his hair and swore under his breath. His head throbbed and eyes stung and mind melted. He couldn’t fucking focus on his stupid essay. He couldn’t fucking think. The strain of the laptop monitor was painful as well so he couldn’t fucking see either. Gnawing on his lip, he rested his head on the edge of his desk and tried to organize his thoughts. Nothing came to mind, nothing ignited the creativity inside him to keep pushing forward. This essay had to be done _tomorrow._ It was already one in the morning and he had two more paragraphs to do. He needed to fucking finish it or else he’s not sleeping. And he can’t afford to skip class tomorrow, he has a lab that’s half percent of his mark. 

“Fuck!” He shouted. Groaning, he leaned back in his chair, listening to it creak and stared up at the ceiling. He needed to do a million things when he just wanted to curl up in his bed and jack off. He couldn’t fucking even do that because Mira was camping over. Rubbing his face, he stretched in his seat and got up. He tried to breathe and collect his thought to no avail and just ended up swearing loudly again. Flopping back into his seat after walking around his stupidly small apartment, Deimos gave his work one more look and felt the life force within him slowly trickle away. Stress was building up. Anxiety was piling up. 

Biting his lip, Deimos lifted his shirt and rested his head on his desk. Instead of just fucking doing his work, he rubbed his nipples through his silk blue bralette he bought recently. Mira had complimented him when he woke up with his shirt off. Mira’s eyes zoned in on the silk fabric and Deimos shivered at her heated stare. 

Prickles of excitement and pleasure flowed through Deimos as he rubbed his nipples. He remembered Mira’s tongue and her lips against him. He shivered and felt his groin start to kick back to life. 

_“I’m home!”_ Mira called out. 

Immediately, Deimos dropped his hands and shoved his shirt above his half-erection. Mira’s head popped out of the side, her smile unaware and innocent to the fact that Deimos was just touching himself. 

He refused to look at her and mumbled out an exhausted greeting. “Hey.”

“Having fun with your essay?” She laughed, walking over. Deimos felt his body burn up and he thought of a million things to settle down his erection. Thankfully, videos he’s found in the depths of reddit did just the trick, even though he was still full of shame. Mira touched his back and rubbed his muscles gently, the boy involuntarily sighing to her touch. She laughed and hugged him from behind. 

“You can do it,” she whispered. Deimos wanted to fucking kiss the shit out of her. 

“Debateable.”

Mira’s chuckle was in his ear. “Do you want something to eat?”

“Noodles.”

“Coming right up,” she snickered. 

She turned the corner into the kitchen and for a while, Deimos sat frozen in his spot, staring down at his thighs and listened to Mira rummage around the kitchen. After a solid ten minutes of doing absolutely nothing and panic about his essay slowly coming back, Mira appeared beside him and placed a warm mug of hot chocolate beside him. He looked at her and she rubbed his sore muscles. Her smile was ethereal. 

Afterwards, she returned back to the kitchen, yawning and humming. Deimos managed to type three more sentences with a clearer plan in mind after chugging half of Mira’s blessed drink. He took another break and wandered into the small kitchen he had where Mira had laid out last night’s leftovers, eggs and bok choy. She pushed her hair out of her face, which in better light was covered in charcoal. Deimos leaned against the counter, staring at her intently. 

“Finished your charcoal piece?” He asked calmly. 

Mira stared at him and shrugged. “Not yet. After I eat, I’m going back down to the campus to work on it more. I’m almost done.”

Deimos stared at this small girl. She dedicated her whole life to her projects. The black stains on her shirt, on her overalls, on her face and her hands were solid evidence. She was a fucking machine. Deimos did his labs, wrote his essays, read his texts, but he didn’t breathe life into what he does. Mira _does._ It’s admirable. 

“Why did you ever decide working with a piece that’s six feet tall was a good idea?” He asked. 

“I wanted to try,” she responded, pouting a little. 

Deimos smiled and touched her shoulder. “Don’t overwork yourself.”

“Debateable.”

He snickered and stepped behind her to rub her shoulders for a bit. He wanted to kiss her neck but opted out to blasting away at his essay. Mira slipped beside him with their late night snack and they watched a few videos while slurping up hot noodles.

 

Mira woke up to the rummaging of clothes and the padding of feet. She yawned leaning up in her sleeping bag she’s cooped up in for a few weeks and looked over to the bathroom where Deimos frantically came tumbling out of. His wet hair was plastered to his face and he shook it as he walked over to the kitchen to start boiling water. Then he scurried over to his desk and chair where he had laid out the clothes he was going to wear. He was only in his underwear now, just some grey boxer briefs that were tight in all the right ways. Quickly, he slipped on a grey bralette to match and shimmied on his pants. Just as he was going to slip on his white shirt, he caught Mira’s peeking eyes. 

“Oh, shit, good morning, did I wake you?” He said in one breath. Mira tried not to stare too long at the sight of Deimos disheveled in tight black jeans and a grey bralette. 

“It was inevitable,” she mumbled, yawning and sitting up fully. “Today’s your English exam, isn’t it?”

He nodded vigorously and slipped on his white tee and grey sweatshirt. “Yeah. I-I’m just a little nervous. I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.”

Dizzily, Mira got up and stretched. “You’ll do fine. Are you running late?”

“I want to look over my notes in the library beforehand,” he said quickly, pushing his wet hair out of his face. The electric kettle dinged when Deimos was midway in gathering his supplies and left him in disarray. Mira shooed him off from the kitchen. 

“I’ll make you coffee and breakfast, gather your stuff,” she said sternly. 

Deimos sighed and nodded.

By the time Mira buttered a bagel and made him a coffee, Deimos was packed and ready to go. He was vibrating as Mira gave him his stuff, asking calmly if he grabbed his pencil case and didn’t forget his phone charger. 

“Ok,” he said quickly, zipping up his bag and taking the mug from Mira. “I think I’m good.”

“Good,” Mira smiled, a little bit more awake now. “You’ll do great.”

He looked pale and he nervously gnawed his lip. Suddenly, he set down his bag and mug again and hugged Mira tightly. For a solid minute, he embraced her tightly until his trembling calmed down. At first, Mira stood frozen in shock until Deimos let out an exasperated sigh. She melted to his sigh and hugged him tightly as well, rubbing his back in circles. It was like he was recharging, slowly regaining more and more confidence the longer he held her. 

Then he unwrapped his arms from her and grabbed his bag and mug with a more serious, steely stare. Mira smiled at him and he smiled back. 

“Ok, I think I’m even better,” he said. Mira was about to say another word of encouragement, but stopped instantly as Deimos suddenly leaned down and kissed her cheek quickly before running out the door. 

Mira was left in his apartment, shell-shocked.

 

Deimos paid for three energy drinks, two party size bags of chips, a pack of iced tea, and six chocolate bars. He hoisted up the heavy bags into his truck and slammed the door loudly. Calmly, he ignited the engine and drove for two minutes to the nearest pizza place and ordered two large pepperonis with extra cheese and some cheese bread. Then, he drove for twenty minutes up the dark highway to the university where he parked his car in front of the Visual Arts building and paraded in with bags of food and treats. With one hard kick, he smashed the sculpture room door open and walked inside. Five pairs of eyes landed on him. 

“Holy shit,” Mira blurted out. She was there, in her paint-stained overalls, covered in sawdust and glue, in front of her year-end project. It was made of wood, a sensual figure, painted in bubbly and vibrant colours and decorated with yarn, stick-on gems and iridescent stickers. She had sniped a table for herself and it overflowed of said yarn, stick-on gems and iridescent stickers, as well as cups of paint water, tools, tubes of paint and papers. A textbook precariously balanced on the edge that overflowed of notes on a different subject completely. 

Her posse of friends were also in a similar messy situation with their own respective artworks and zoned in on the bountiful food Deimos had just walked in with. 

“Holy fucking _shit,_ ” Dede repeated. 

“Where’s the cleanest table, I can’t see,” Deimos responded. Immediately, Mira scrambled to grab two nearby desks and made a long table for Deimos to settle all the food on. Her friends jumped at the sight and Mira stood motionless, shocked and looking up at him. Then, ever so slowly a huge smile stretched across her face. 

“I could kiss the shit out of you right now,” she said in one breath. 

“You’re covered in glue and paint, no thanks,” Deimos responded after he regained the ability to talk. For a moment, he lost himself. 

Hastily, Mira ran over to wash her hands before diving into her meal. One of her friends fake-cried and blessed Mira for having such a considerate friend. After the many months of him poking into the studio now and again, they’ve gotten used to him. 

“You have no idea how much I love you right now,” Mira said after she chugged down her first energy drink. “It’s one in the morning, our sculptures are due this afternoon, and I have an exam afterwards.” 

“You’ll do fine,” Deimos rubbed her back. Mira looked at him and teared up. 

“You’re so great, how did I ever deserve you?!” She wailed. 

“The answer is you don’t,” Dede teased as she scarfed down her fourth piece. 

“You really don’t,” Frank egged on. 

Mira glared at them hotly and cuddled up to Deimos. “At least I have someone who cares for me.”

“Well, that’s debatable,” he teased. “I just don’t want you being prissy when you come home tonight.”

Mira’s jaw dropped in shock. Everyone howled in laughter. 

 

“I’m home,” Mira called out feebly. 

Deimos was lying on his bed playing with his phone. “Welcome back,” he replied. “How’d it go?” He heard her drop her bag and kick off her shoes. Seconds after, she flopped on top of him, sighing. She was warm, her heart beating fast against his chest. That was probably because of the trek up to his place, not because of him. 

“It’s done and over and I don’t care,” she groaned. Deimos patted her back. “I handed in my painting on time, I even had time to varnish it, and with Frank and Dede’s help, got my sculpture into the class without breaking it in half. My other exam on whatever went ok I guess, I don’t even care anymore.”

“You did well,” Deimos chuckled. 

“You too. You had four exams, I had one and a half.” 

“Yes, well, but I didn’t have sixty hour-long projects to finish.”

“Touché,” she snickered. They were quiet for a second, Deimos still scrolling through Instagram at this point, until Mira sighed and relaxed against him. “I want to sleep for a million years.”

“On top of me?”

“Yes, you’re comfortable.”

“Thanks.”

“Ok, cool, bye, I’m actually going to sleep,” Mira muttered, curling up on him. Deimos smiled and let her. 


	5. Fantasies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're healthy teenagers doing "healthy things."

Mira woke up with Deimos in her bed. She squinted at his peaceful, sleeping face, admiring his soft features. Why wasn't he this cute awake? His pink parted lips, his long raven eyelashes, his un-furrowed eyebrows, his plump cheeks. He also smelled like cinnamon and laundry. 

Rolling out of his embrace, she quietly fell onto the floor and got up dizzily. Last night came back in bits and pieces that lead Mira to this point. They came back from their first summer blockbuster movie of the year, played Mario Kart for at least three hours, Annie came home drunk with her boyfriend, they played some games a little tipsy, and Deimos crashed in her bed. 

Oh _god,_ her roommates are never going to forget about this. 

“Deimos and you finally tied the knot?” Dani instantly said as Mira walked out of her bedroom. Mira jumped and clutched at her heart, rolling her eyes at her. 

“Jesus Christ, Dani,” she hissed. “No, we didn’t.” 

“Hard to believe with Deimos’ pants on the floor,” she replied, pointing at them. 

“Dude, sleeping in jeans is a pain,” Mira rebutted, hastily closing her door and shoving her away. 

Sitting on the couch was Annie and her boyfriend, Daniel. 

“Good morning sunshine!” Annie sang. 

“Oh, shut the fuck up,” Mira shook her head. 

“Morning, Mira!” Daniel sang along. Sophie and Raven were snickering in the kitchen and Renee popped out of her room to whoop at her. Mira snapped at her to be quiet since Deimos was still sleeping. 

“I hate all of you,” she narrowed her eyes as she ventured into the kitchen. 

“Did you bang?” Sophie giggled. 

_“No,”_ she barked. “Do you truly think I’d bang Deimos when all of you guys are home!?”

“You’ve done it before,” Raven pointed out. 

_“Fucking hell, that was one time.”_ Mira jabbed a finger at her. Raven smiled and smacked it away. 

“Last night was a hot mess,” Sophie laughed. “Do you remember any of it?”

“I remember all of it, you ass,” Mira whined. 

“Then you must have remembered when Deimos cradled you like a baby and kissed the shit out of you,” she reported back teasingly. 

Mira paused and looked at her in shock. 

“Did that actually happen?” She said quickly. 

Raven and Sophie exchanged amused looks and burst out laughing. 

“We’re fucking with you,” she sniggered. 

“You fucking _apes,”_ Mira growled and aimed for their legs. Sophie and Raven ran away and hopped onto the couch with Daniel and Annie. All four of them giggled and gossiped like teenagers as Mira angrily made herself a breakfast sandwich and coffee. 

_“You wanna make bets to see how long they’ll actually get together?”_

_“How do we know they’re not already together?”_

_“Mira did leave for three weeks, there’s gotta be development there.”_

“I’m going to throw a pot and/or pan at you,” Mira called over at them. She heard a chorus of giggles and they quieted down. 

While Mira cut up some cheese for her meal, sudden hands and arms came out of nowhere and wrapped around her waist. Deimos sighed, his hot breath tickling her as he rested and nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck. He was warm. For a long moment, he just hugged her and said nothing, breathing periodically and reminding Mira herself to take a breath. 

“Morning,” he grumbled, his voice raspy and low. 

Mira patted his arm, realizing he was just wearing boxers. Usually, that wouldn’t frighten her, but the fact that there were four other pairs of judging eyes watching Deimos embrace her so gently from the living room made her blood run cold and face run hot. 

“Good morning,” Mira replied evenly. 

“What are you making?”

“Breakfast sandwich, want one?”

He grumbled a response. That was a yes. 

“Hot chocolate or tea?”

“Hot chocolate.”

“Ok,” she laughed. “Deimos, you gotta let go of me or else I can’t make breakfast.”

Lazily, he lifted his head and unwrapped his arms around her. However, instead of just walking off, he bent down and kissed her cheek, then walked off back into the bedroom to presumably sleep again. After the door closed behind him, everyone on the couch screamed back to life. 

“What the FUCK was that?!” Annie shrilled. 

Mira immediately raced at them with her oily spatula and hushed them. “Deimos is still sleeping!” 

“What the _FUCK_ was that?!” Annie shrilled, softer and quieter. 

“He just did the Ultimate Domestic Back Hug! Something only couples do!” Sophie hissed. 

“Screw the hug, he kissed you!” Dani cried out. 

“You guys are middle schoolers!” Mira snapped, embarrassed and red. “Shut up!” 

“Mira, I endorse this relationship, let it blossom,” Daniel blessed her. 

She whined into her hands. 

“Guys, we gotta leave her, she needs to make breakfast for her _honey,”_ Raven teased. Mira glared at her. 

“I will, but only because the eggs are going to burn,” she hissed and hotly turned away. 

“ _‘The eggs will burn,’ she says,”_ Dani snickered behind her. 

 

Mira in Deimos’ dreams smiles at him. She laughs and holds his hand a lot. 

Deimos in his dreams can smile and laugh with her. He can hug and kiss her. He isn’t afraid to show off his affection for her. Mira takes him, she accepts him. 

She devours him whole. 

Mira in Deimos’ dreams pins him against his wall. Her hands slide across his stomach, inching their way slowly to his chest where she teases and plays with his nipples. She still has that loving smile on her face as she kisses up his chest and licks playfully at his nipples. She giggles as Deimos moans out her name, fueled by his whiny pleas for more. Mira in Deimos’ dreams listens to him and worships his body in ways he’s never experienced. She bites him, she licks him, she tastes him. Her pink tongue was a serpent that poisoned and drugged him, leaving him intoxicated and sopping wet. 

Deimos in his dreams wears his lingerie that Mira adores. Not only his top pieces but his panties, garters or girdles, with thigh high socks. His clothes always stay on, but that doesn’t stop Mira from pleasuring him as her lips and tongue gladly glide and suck across the silky lace fabric. 

Mira in Deimos’ dreams also wears lingerie. Sometimes she’s in his favourite babydoll, other times she’s wearing boyshorts, a sports bra- something masculine. Dominant. He can see her nipples through the fabric, hard and perked like his, but every time he tries to take off her top, she snickers and pushes him back against the wall. She distracts him with her bruising touches and delectable lips. 

On good nights, Mira’s hands will slide lower than expected. On good nights, she’ll slip her hands into his panties. Her fingers will feel and squeeze his ass, loving the heft of him, groaning out how sexy he was. Then, Deimos will kiss her and guide her fingers to his wet entrance, and Mira will fuck him messily against the wall with her fingers. 

_“S-Shit!”_ Deimos gasped. He tried to think of how Mira’s fingers felt teasing his puckering hole. 

Mira in Deimos’ dreams dominated him. 

Deimos in his dreams was Mira’s toy. 

_“Aah, f-fu-uck,”_ Deimos whined again. He was getting close. Hot red, blaring pleasure bubbled up from his stomach. It infected his whole being, from the tips of his toes to the back of his neck. He couldn’t hold in his desperate hungry moans that dripped from his mouth. He couldn’t keep the set pace he made for the past half an hour. He was reaching his limit and he body begged for more. Roughly, he fucked into his hand harder, listening to his bed creak as he did so. Hungrily, he fucked his fingers deeper and deeper into his dripping hole, his eyes rolling back as he found his favourite spot. 

_“H-Holy s-”_ He hiccupped a gasp and stopped abruptly. His body screamed in protest, body jolting and trembling as he rolled onto his back and hastily grabbed the pink toy on his bedside table. Licking it hurriedly, he resumed fucking into his hand and quickly doubled the pressure with the introduction of his small little vibrator. It slipped into him easily, and he desperately fucked himself with renewed vigor with a longer toy that did twice as well as his fingers. 

He bounced on top of it, biting his lip hard to stop himself from screaming, sweat dripping down his chin and tears in his eyes. He couldn’t stop now, every animalistic instinct fuelled his needs. 

_“M-Mira!”_ He cried out. 

He wanted her. He wanted her lips on his nipples and fingers inside of him. His chest felt cold, even with his black bralette on, and rolled over again onto his stomach to rub his perked nipples against his sheets. Pleasure hit him from every side, his cock, his ass and his nipples, and soon after, he lost himself. Roughly, he pushed the toy deep inside of him and cranked it to the highest setting right on his prostate. He vigorously fucked his hand and scrubbed the tip. He rubbed his swollen nipples against the rough fabric of his bralette. 

Deimos broke and ejaculated all over his hand. His body convulsed and a foreign noise escaped his lips. For a moment, he couldn’t see. His body and mind had reached an ultimate high and Deimos saw stars and Mira. Then he crashed down, his body shaking and ejaculating again, thighs weak and trembling, arms weak and trembling. 

Deimos gasped and gasped hard into his pillow, feeling like he had just run a marathon. There was a throbbing in his head, in his cock, in his ass, in his body, that didn’t subside. His body throbbed for more when he got up and stripped his bed. His body throbbed for more when he took a shower. His body throbbed for more when he wiped himself dry with the towel. His cock throbbed for more when he looked at himself in the mirror, looking at his erotic, swollen nipples. The same nipples that Mira licked and sucked. The same chest she left bruising hickeys on. 

Deimos couldn’t stop himself. Shakily, he walked over to his closet and through the thick of his leather jackets, shirts and jeans found two chests. One was larger than the other. The smaller one had a lock. Slowly, he opened the large chest and pulled out his matching white bralette and lace white panties. Then, he unlocked his smaller chest and was presented with the toys he’s accumulated throughout the years. He grabbed his prostate vibrator and two wireless pill vibrators. 

Calmly, Deimos bent over his desk and pushed in his first toy. He whimpered when he turned it on and slipped on his panties. Then, he slipped on his bralette and positioned the two pill vibrators accordingly, right on his nipples. Then, he shakily sat down on his dirtied bed and spread his legs. He bit his lip and pulled out his dripping cock and pumped himself over and over again, prostate and nipples pleasured as he did so. 

 

Mira sighed and drew circles in her sketchbook. She pressed her cheek against her cool desk and drew circles in her sketchbook. 

Today was her day off and everyone else was at work. Originally, Mira wanted to finish some oil paintings she never got around to doing, but the moment she left her bed, she lost the effort to do so. Now, sitting at her desk with unfinished projects looking over her, she drew circles in her sketchbook. She tried making them into forms but ended up with a hot abstract mess and she ripped the page out and threw it to the floor. She was met with earlier sketches from her sketching class of male and female forms. 

Curious, Mira rummaged around and found her sketchbooks from high school, wondering how they compared from her first year of seriously studying anatomy. Unsurprisingly, Mira’s university sketches were better. But, there was a stylistic quality to her earlier work. Better line work, appreciation for exaggeration. 

Mira blinked at one sketch of a naked male leaning against a window. Laughter bubbled up. The reference photo for this one was from a porno. High school Mira was thirsty. University Mira was thirsty as well, but didn’t make a sketchbook dedicated to the kinks she had. 

“Where was that one, anyway?” Mira laughed. Intrigued, she got up from her seat and wandered through her room. She probably hid it from her other roommates and found it crammed in her closet inside another book. It was a thin sketchbook, consisting of only twenty pages that were covered with body studies of women and men engaging in sexual acts. Mira laughed at some of them, amused at how shameless she was drawing these back in the day. There was a page for threesomes, a page for robe-binding and a page for male lingerie. 

Mira paused on the page, looking at a male in a babydoll. She looked at another wearing a garter. She glanced at a couple making love in the corner, both wearing bralettes, thigh highs and chokers. 

Mira thought about Deimos. She didn’t mean to, but he was the first man that came to mind. She pondered about the times she’s seen him wear bralettes and bras, and realized she’s only seen him wear panties once. She couldn’t even consider her “seeing” it, but more like “feeling” it when she was groping Deimos’ ass. 

The girl blushed at the thought. Even though she promised Raven and her friends to stop suppressing and avoiding stressful situations, she avoided and pretended the little heated bout with Deimos never happened. Deimos did as well and both of them did have an awkward period where Mira didn’t feel comfortable sleeping in the same bed as Deimos anymore. That flew out the window when Mira passed out on top of him after her exams though, and everything has gone back to normal. Or at least on the surface for Mira. 

Sighing, Mira closed her sketchbooks, got out of her chair, locked her door and slipped into her bed. She couldn’t stop herself. 

Lazily, she grabbed her headphones that were hanging on her headrest and clicked them into her phone. Hiding underneath her sheets, she scrolled through her bookmarks and tapped one particular link. 

Mira couldn’t stop herself. 

The link loaded up. Just from the thumbnail, anyone could realize how far in deep Mira was with Deimos. She popped in her earbuds and lowered the volume. Then, she calmly tapped on the video and let it play. 

Moans came out of her headphones. Wet, raw slaps came next. The first frame of the video was a pale, hairless man dressed in a babydoll and thigh highs being rammed deep with a thick cock. His voice was effeminate and whiny. His face was twisted in sick pleasure. His legs were spread wide open and revealed his pink cock that bobbed as his partner fucked him deep. He begged desperately for his partner to fuck him faster and harder, screaming out when he pushed in deep and rolled his hips delectably and slowly, the complete opposite of what he wanted. His thighs twitched and body snapped as he took the other man in so deeply, his pink hole gaping wide when he pulled out for the viewers. 

Mira swallowed thickly, feeling wet between the thighs already. The male in lingerie was pretty. He had a nice athletic body and a delectable round ass, his body shape overall similar to Deimos’. His moans were loud and livid, his face expressive and words honest. His high-pitched whines sounded similar to Deimos’ as well. If it weren’t for the pale skin and brown hair, the boy in the video would be identical to Deimos, which was one of the reasons this random video from an explicit porn site was buried in her bookmarks. 

Sighing, Mira lazily slipped her hands into her sweatpants and touched herself. Personally, she felt no burning intent to masturbate right now, no ultimate need to pleasure herself, but did it just because. She was bored and lazy and tired. No one was home also and she wouldn’t have a perfect chance like this for a while. She just wanted to feel something, and that something built up quickly in her as she pleasured herself further and deeper. 

After a few friendly bouts of teasing, the dominating man in the video finally gave what the pretty boy wanted and rammed him deep, the bed they stretched across creaking loudly as they did. The pretty boy couldn’t supress his moans and screamed out, body jolting in ecstasy as the topping man rammed straight onto his prostate. His body started to convulse, the male ready to cum any second now, and hastily latched onto his partner for a bruising kiss. Their breaths were quick and shaky as their tongues swirled around each other, and lips popped when they separated. Suddenly, his partner roughly pinned him to the bed, palms flat on his chest, and fucked him even harder and deeper before. 

With every punishing blow to the pretty boy’s prostate, Mira rubbed her clit through her panties, loving the roughness of the fabric. She tried to time her little rubs to the thrusting of the dominant man, trying to find some intimacy with the video. She was wet, incredibly wet, from watching the intense display on her phone. The two men were erotic and beautiful, and their pace kept getting faster and faster, which meant Mira rubbed her little button faster and faster. 

She knew she was approaching her limit and suddenly stopped touching herself, an unintentional gasp leaving her lips. Her hips shook and pussy throbbed, the sensation taking over her for a moment before she teased herself again. She wanted the sensation to last more than just a measly minute, even though every dull second just made her more and more sensitive.

Roughly, the pretty boy’s partner in the video grabbed both his hands and pinned them above his head, leaving the male’s chest unprotected and free for his partner’s lips to roam. He devoured his pink nipples, making the latter scream out. He was at his tipping point as well and begged his partner to let him come, both of them gyrating and grinding against each other shakily. Their voices were high-pitched and uncontrolled, both males too invested in the overwhelming pleasure that took over all rational thought. At this moment, they were one and had one plan in mind. 

Hastily, Mira scrubbed her clip hard and moaned out, flinging her head back and back snapping upward. She couldn’t control her body anymore and her thighs shook as she came, fingers still pressing hard against her clit until she was oversensitive and a writhing mess. The video left her line of sight and she closed her eyes, imagining Deimos in front of her. She could still taste and smell him. She could still feel the shape of his ass and cock in her hands. She could still feel the hardness of his nipples on her tongue. 

God, she remembered how he moaned out her name. 

Mira bit her lip to stop herself from crying out and continued to punish her oversensitive clit. Her toes stretched, thighs shook and pussy throbbed. She felt more and more wetness stain her underwear, she felt heat dripping out of her. Then, she stopped and her whole body jolted and she came again, this time the sensation twice as powerful and she couldn’t stop herself from moaning and shaking and cumming. The high went for longer than expected, a high that felt like centuries passed as she squirted and came underneath her hot sheets, and immediately after she crashed down to earth with a thud. 

She gasped and gasped and _gasped,_ mind and body throbbing from her sudden violent bout. She needed a moment. 

The moment went on forever. 

Her hands were shaking when she locked her phone and Mira laughed at herself. 

“What the hell have you gotten yourself into, Mira,” she said out loud. Groaning, she stared at the ceiling and let the rest of the aftershocks of pleasure moving through her subside away until she was just left with weaker legs and a sensitive pussy. 

Instead of being a normal person and wash up, Mira lied in bed for a while just staring up at her plain ceiling. She was even more tired now. 

How many times has this happened since the stupid Incident?

How many times has she touched and pleasured herself at the thought of Deimos in lingerie? How many times has she subjected him to her nightly fantasies or morning daydreams? How many times has she masturbated and right after hung out with him, her body throbbing for more? 

What the hell is wrong with her? 

She felt like an animal in heat, dying for a mate. She hasn’t felt this way in a long time and it terrified her in a way. Her bedroom life and outside life felt like it was melding together, reds and blues turning into unwanted purples. What she had just done has to stay inside this room and not leak out again. She can’t think of Deimos that way. She can’t fantasize. She can’t long for him. 

It’s just going to get messy again. 

Suddenly, amidst her silent contemplation time with the ceiling and herself, her phone sprang to life and rang a distinctive ringtone that was only for one person. 

“Deimos,” Mira said after she picked up. Her heart pounded against her chest. Her body still hasn’t recovered from her lazy turned frantic masturbation session and her mind won’t recover for at least a day. Her hips involuntarily twitched when he said her name. 

_“Mira.”_

His voice was in her ear. 

“What’s up?” Mira asked softly, trying to play it cool. She was absolutely _not_ masturbating to the thought of Deimos being fucked hard and deep two seconds ago. 

_“Wanna go watch a movie or something?”_

Mira bit her lip and sighed. “We’ve seen all the movies to see though.”

_“Any movies you want to re-watch in theaters before it’s too late?”_

“Not really…” 

_“Wanna get food?”_

“I just ate a while ago.”

_“New art exhibits?”_

“Seen them all.”

_“Oh my fucking god-”_ Deimos groaned, clearly pissed. _“I want to see you, Mira.”_

Mira blinked and blushed. “Oh.”

_“That’s it? Oh?”_

Her face turned red and she rolled over to suffocate her burning face in her pillow. Deimos was silent on the other line, patiently awaiting her response. 

“Ok,” Mira sighed. “We could go downtown? I need to buy some art supplies.”

_“Ok.”_

Mira rubbed her eyes and bit her lip. “I want to see you too…buddy.” 

_Buddy._ Is she 75? 

_“I’ll pick you up in ten minutes.”_

Mira’s heart skipped a beat. “Uh, make it like half an hour, dude, I’m still in bed.” 

_“Did I wake you up?”_

“Basically,” she lied through her teeth. She was in bed but her panties were soaked and she probably smells. 

He sighed. _“I’ll get ready slowly.”_

“See you.”

_“See you.”_

It took Mira a solid ten minutes to leave her warm bed. It took another ten minutes to drag herself into the shower. And then it took a million years to leave her shower. 

She didn’t know why she was being so groggy and lazy, she’s masturbated and hung out with Deimos plenty of times before, but today she just wasn’t feeling it. She wanted to see him badly, but the emotion felt too strong it scared her. 

When Deimos arrived, kicking down her door, Mira was in the middle of changing and yelped in surprise. 

“Don’t come in, I’m naked!” She screamed out instinctively. Technically she was in a towel, but she still didn’t want Deimos to see her in this state. 

“I’m in the living room,” he called back calmly. 

Mira smiled as she changed.

Yawning, she entered the living room in a grey dress and black thigh highs, one of the very few clean clothes she had now since it was the break and she was lazy. Deimos sat in a random chair scrolling through his phone, his black combat boots still on as well as a new addition of a blue hat, black bomber jacket and white shirt. Two coffee cups perched on the table beside him. 

Calmly, he looked up from his phone when Mira approached, eyes widening in surprise before hastily looking in a different direction. 

“I know, I haven’t looked like a girl in forever,” she commented. Deimos glanced at her uneasily. 

“Didn’t mean it that way,” he pointed out. 

Mira rolled her eyes and waved it off. “Don’t worry, I was going to tease you about finally wearing colour,” she laughed, flicking his blue cap and gesturing to his white shirt. 

“I own colour,” he said sourly. Stretching, he got up, doubling in height and leaving Mira to peer up at him. She enjoyed it when he was sitting. 

“You got coffee?” Mira chirped as he locked his phone and shoved it into his pocket. 

He nodded and passed her cup. “Passed the time.” 

Mira smiled, her chest twisting in painful knots. This fucking asshole knows the right way to her heart. Calmly, she swirled around and wandered into the kitchen to hide her red face. “Raven got donuts recently, you want some?” 

Casually, Deimos got the hint to take off his shoes and wander into the kitchen with her. They were going to hang out for a bit at her house. Partly because Mira didn’t want to be in close proximity with him in his truck _just_ yet. It’s been less than an hour she was moaning out and fantasizing about him. Fuck, Mira, just act _casual._

While she sniped a chocolate donut with colourful sprinkles, Deimos slipped his hand to her hips and leaned down to look at her. Her heart did a triple flip and she stood still, staring up at his green eyes. 

“Have you been sleeping?” He asked calmly. Mira and Deimos have known each other enough to touch each other casually. Hell, Mira cuddled with him after knowing him for ten minutes, so she shouldn’t be so frantic about one little touch. But she was. 

“Sort of,” Mira laughed. She avoided his intense stare. 

“It’s summer break what’s wrong with you.”

“Insomnia runs deep in my veins.” 

Deimos sighed dramatically and grabbed a glazed donut from the little box. “Get some sleep, you dweeb,” he nagged, patting her on the head. Mira stared at him, watching him casually flop onto the couch and eat his donut in seconds. “When do you want to head out?” He chirped between bites. 

Mira was still in the kitchen stunned by him. How casual he was with her. How normal it was for him touch her platonically. How much he cared about her. 

“You wanna watch an episode of Voltron and then head out?” She asked. 

“You and Voltron,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. 

“Is that a yes?”

“Sure, it’s a good show,” he sighed and waved her over. Mira smiled and trotted over to the living room, settling her donut and coffee down. Deimos fiddled with the remote and brought up Netflix in seconds while Mira sat down beside him. A few more clicks and seconds later they were settled into the couch watching the quick opening unfold. 

“How’s your break?” Mira asked as it played. 

“Boring as shit.”

“We’ve been watching a bunch of movies together?”

“Yeah, that’s true,” Deimos admitted. “But since I can’t work in your country I’m just left to rot in my stupidly small apartment.”

“You wanna go on a road trip?”

“Not really.”

“I’ll keep it in mind,” Mira teased him in spite. 

“You’re such an ass.”

“Hey, dude, you gotta explore Canada. You’re going to go…back to Greece eventually,” she trailed off. Deimos will eventually go back to Greece… She stopped whatever strong emotions twisted her insides and stopped her expression from changing. However, it was enough to catch Deimos’ attention. Quietly, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. 

“I’m going nowhere for now,” he muttered. “Greece is rad as hell, but for now I’m here with you.”

Mira bit her lip and swallowed thickly. “Ok,” she murmured, stunned at Deimos’ shocking display of sincerity. “So, road trip sometime?” 

“Fine.” 

She chuckled. “It’ll be fun. Annie’s parents have a beach home we can go to with the others or we could go camping under the stars.”

“At least it won’t be as cold as shit unlike the supermoon incident.”

“Hey, you enjoyed it.”

“I really didn’t.”

Mira elbowed him playfully and he shushed her to be quiet and watch the show. Calmly, Deimos wrapped his arm around her and rested his cheek against her head, relaxed and quiet. The episode went quickly, Deimos cursing in the end as it was a cliff hanger and announced after their little errand he was staying over to finish the stupid show because he was finally hooked. It only took him six episodes. 

After Mira hopped into his car and stole the aux cord to blast her music, the girl realized how easily she reverted back to her normal self. One episode of Voltron and she was singing in Deimos’ truck with the driver leaning against the wheel laughing hard. 

“You’re so pretty when you smile,” Mira giggled after singing her heart at to Beyoncé’s Halo. Instead of the usual drop of the smile and a snide, spiteful comment, Deimos kept grinning and replied shyly. 

“You too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh buddy   
> it only goes downhill from here   
> and it'll go downhill f a s t   
> thank you everyone for all the love so far y'all are great <3 
> 
> I updated the chapter count and as you can see we've got 14 chapters in total  
> But that isn't the end of Mira and Deimos, nope, this is really just the beginning because, well, you'll see :^)   
> (if you check my tapas it's not really a surprise but)   
> (also y'all getting this chapter earlier than tapas viewers because y'all great)


	6. Friendship Bracelets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mira meets Gabriel after a while. Deimos is jealous, but he won't admit it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mentions of past abusive relationships  
> it's not too explicit, but warning 
> 
> we're gonna go downhill from here kids, put on your safety goggles

“Jesus Christ, do you seriously need both of those paints? They look exactly the same, one’s just called _Hooker’s Green_ and the other’s called _Grass Emerald.”_

“They’re different!” Mira rolled her eyes dramatically. “Just because the printed colour looks similar doesn’t mean the paint is exactly the same. Look,” she twisted the caps off them, “Hooker’s Green is bluer.”

“They literally look the exact same.”

“There’s also the factor that they’re different colours when dry!”

“Literally the same colour.”

Hotly, Mira elbowed him. He smirked and dodged her attacks, swirling around carefully in the small aisles of Mira’s favourite indie art store. She’s been everywhere today. First she was cold and shy, then she was quiet and loving, now she’s excited and heated. Deimos would never admit to her that he was worried about her health from the dark eye circles under her eyes, but he absolutely was. Maybe tonight he’ll sleep with her just to watch over and ensure she gets enough sleep. 

“Why are you so rude,” Mira said sarcastically, bending down to grab a few purples and silvers. Deimos held out the basket and she plopped them in. 

“I’m not. I’m just being reasonable,” he remarked back. 

“Put that sass back in your pocket.”

Deimos chuckled. He followed Mira into her favourite aisle, the pen and pencils aisle, and Mira had fun testing out the various pens that were on sale. Deimos joined her, drawing over her scribbles just to spite her. They snickered and Mira plopped some erasable ones into the basket. Deimos was ordered to grab some charcoal sticks in the neighbouring aisle and when he came back, Mira was on her tippy toes reaching for some black markers on the top shelf. Before coming in to save her short ass, Deimos paused and took in the sight. It was instinctive. 

Mira looked like a girl. Deimos found himself staring just like a few hours ago when she walked out of her room. She looked so cute in her grey dress. It was tight at her chest, loose at her waist and short enough to give Deimos a heart attack. As she reached, the dress hiked up her legs and showed off the curves of her body. It’s not every day he sees the curve of Mira’s butt, it’s always hiding underneath long baggy sweaters. Furthermore, it’s not every day he sees Mira’s honey thighs. With the dress hiked up high, the boy was offered more and more skin he’d ever bargain for as well as the inclusion of adorable thigh highs. 

Slowly, Deimos swallowed his thirstiness down for her and walked over calmly. 

“Need help?” He asked jokingly, hoping Mira didn’t noticed how high-pitched and nervous his voice was. 

Hotly, she glared at him. “I can do it myself.”

“Let me help you,” he sneered, already calmly reaching over for the markers. 

“Fight me!” She hissed, hopping for them now. Deimos cracked a smile and chuckled when he grabbed them and plopped them in Mira’s hands. She was salty and pouted for a bit as she tested them out. Deimos smirked and couldn’t help himself from kissing the side of her head. It just…felt natural to kiss her. He wondered if Mira just saw it as another platonic way of showing affection when in reality he can’t help himself. He likes her too goddamn much to keep his hands off her. Sometimes it just slips out of the cracks of this wall he’s hastily trying to keep up between them. It just spills and overwhelms him how much he cares for her. How much she makes him feel. God, sometimes he just wants to sit down and catch his breath. 

“So from the prevailing patterns I’m witnessing, are you starting a new project or something?” Deimos asked when they walked over to the little tape section. 

“Yeah,” she murmured, looking at the various masking tapes. “Annual exhibition with a few distant friends.”

“Is there a theme?”

“Muse,” Mira said immediately. “We’re supposed to draw one subject and feature him or her in many pieces.” She looked up at him, uneasiness in her eyes. 

“What?” He said without thinking. He sounded way ruder than he wanted to.

Mira shook her head. “No, it’s nothing. I…just don’t know who’d be my muse.”

“What about me?” He joked. Her big brown eyes looked at him, a wash of emotion over them he couldn’t exactly pinpoint. Was it curiosity? Hostility? 

Mira shrugged. “If it comes to it, are you willing?”

Deimos paused. He’s gone through Mira’s sketchbooks before, seen her work in progress and finished. Her work is sensual, stylistic. She loves playing with bright colours but juxtaposes that with such dark underlying themes. Her figures are erotic, steely-eyed and cold. Her figures are usually naked, colours unnatural to their skin tone, ghosting over their bare bodies. Would he…would he need to model for her? Would he need to take off his clothes and reveal the rawest parts of his body? Would he stand in front of her, naked and exposed, and would Mira… 

Mira would stare at every inch of his skin and soak in the details. Her eyes would rake down his figure, burning his skin, and immortalize that moment with just a pencil and paper. God, just thinking of the intensity of that stare on him made him shiver. 

“Sure, I guess,” he said finally. He swallowed thickly, trying not to think about it too much. Mira smiled at him shyly and wrapped her arm around his. 

“Thanks, buddy,” she laughed. 

_Buddy._

Deimos tried to not hate the word. She only uses that word when she’s nervous and uncomfortable. 

After a long debate of Mira wanting to buy or not to buy more lino for some prints she wanted to do, the two individuals made their way back up to the front to pay. Mira was pouting because Deimos won their little debate on not buying more lino since she already had a bunch at home. 

“What a sore loser,” he snickered, wrapping an arm around her. 

“You’re such a dick,” she hissed. She wiggled his loving touches off of her and walked a little bit quicker.

“You can buy it another day,” he pointed out. 

Mira stuck her tongue out and stomped away. However, spectacularly, she ended up bumping straight into an innocent bystander. Deimos barked a laugh. 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” She yelped in surprise. The tall male turned around and looked down at her, shaking his head. 

“No, it’s ok-” He paused and suddenly his eyes lit up. “Mira?!”

Mira stared up at him and her jaw dropped. “Gabriel!?” 

Deimos strolled up beside Mira and stared at the pale, strawberry blonde male. It was like he walked into a female-oriented romantic comedy. Mira and _Gabriel_ immediately held hands and squealed in delight at the sight of each other. Mira hopped around, acting cute and shit with him. Admittedly, Gabriel _was_ cute with circle-rimmed glasses and voluminous, long hair. Usually, if a guy grows out his hair, it looks terrible because it’s so flat and greasy, but he pulls it so well with such wonderful curls and the casually-pushed-out-of-face style of his hairdo. His smile was brilliant and he grabbed Mira’s face with such vigor Deimos thought he was going to kiss her. 

“Holy shit, it’s been forever!” He laughed, squishing her face playfully. 

Mira laughed and suddenly jumped on him, pulling him into a crushing hug. “Oh my god, has it!”

They laughed and giggled and hugged each other tightly. 

“When did you move back?! Are you living here!?” Mira asked excitedly. 

“Yeah! After I graduated, I moved back here with a few buddies.”

“Holy fuck, _dude!_ That’s rad as hell! Wait, do you go to the university!?”

“No, I’ll be attending next year though!” 

“Fucking yes! Dude, it’s been so long, look at you! You’re so hot now!”

“What about you!? You cut off your hair and you’re so adorable,” he laughed. He ruffled her head and bent down suddenly to kiss her right on the forehead, overwhelmingly happy. Mira giggled and hugged him again, kissing his cheeks in the process. Gabriel snickered, face red and smile bursting with delight. Anyone could see that they loved each other, romantically or platonically. Anyone could see that they suited each other. 

Deimos was blown away by how…how intimate they were. The loving stares, the blinding smiles, the hugs and the kisses. He didn’t know what to do. It felt like he shouldn’t even be here. He felt like a third wheel on a date. He felt like Pluto while Mira and Gabriel were the Sun and Earth. (Also, Mira has never kissed Deimos on the cheek. But she can with Gabriel…) 

Gabriel and Mira chatted a little bit more, Mira running her fingers through Gabriel’s hair, complimenting him on how beautiful he looked, before glancing over at Deimos suddenly. 

“Oh, shit, Deimos,” she chuckled. “Hey, this is Gabriel! He went to my high school-” She paused and with one little quirk of her eyebrow and downcast of her eyes, a wave of uneasiness washed over her expression. “-A-another art student.”

“What a surprise,” Deimos said bluntly, trying to hide the fact he’d caught her millisecond of weakness. Gabriel’s attention directed to him and immediately he felt uneasy. Meeting new people was never his strong point. Especially since Mira and Gabriel seemed to be on a completely different plane of existence from him. 

“Hi, I’m Gabriel,” he said politely with a grand smile and an outstretched hand. 

Deimos took it and shook gently. “Deimos,” he replied calmly.

Up close, Gabriel was really killing the androgynous look. He had slender hands and fingers, a soft face and porcelain skin. If it weren’t for the flat chest and broad shoulders, Deimos might have thought he was a girl. But, then again if he was looking at Gabriel from far away, he probably would believe he was a girl. Kind of like the opposite of Mira. Mira, the small skater boy. Gabriel, the tall slender model (even though Deimos was taller).

With a playful smirk, Gabriel glanced at Mira. “Are you two a thing?”

Mira exchanged looks with Deimos and blushed red. “N-No!” She laughed nervously. “Just close friends.” Gabriel’s gaze fell upon Deimos, awaiting a rebuttal. He was silent, knowing it was going to come off that he was an asshole when in reality all what Deimos wanted in the world was make out with Mira. 

“Are _you_ dating anyone?” Mira asked harshly, poking his side. 

“Nope, had some flings here and there, but no one in particular,” Gabriel shrugged. “You?”

“Same thing,” she shrugged. 

“You dating anyone, Deimos?” Gabriel asked calmly. Mira met Deimos’ gaze, curious. 

He shook his head. “No,” he mumbled. “I have no time, I’m babysitting her.” 

Gabriel laughed. “She’s a riot.”

“Hey, I’m right here,” Mira crossed her arms. 

“You’re a riot,” he replied, smirking. Mira elbowed him and he laughed and kissed the top of her head. “God, I missed you.”

“You should visit my place sometime, I ended up living with Raven and the others,” she asked happily. 

“You and Raven in a home together?” Gabriel cocked an eyebrow. Mira’s jaw dropped and she shoved him playfully. 

“We’re not like that anymore,” she laughed. Deimos was relieved she could joke around about such a touchy subject. “But seriously, come over sometime! Sophie and Annie miss you a lot.”

Gabriel flashed a teasing smile. “I think they miss Dave more than me,” he snickered. He bopped her nose. “You on the other hand, probably missed me the most.”

Mira crossed her arms and smirked. “Dickhead,” she teased. “Always jumping to conclusions.”

“I’m right, aren’t I?” He pulled her into another swirling hug. 

“That’s not the point,” she laughed, wiggling her way out of his grasp. She glanced at Deimos and held out her arms. “Save me,” she groaned out dramatically. 

Deimos just stared at them. Gabriel snickered and bit at Mira’s ears, the girl giggling and wiggling harder out of his arms. Gabriel buried his face into the crook of her shoulder laughing and kissed the side of her head. 

Emotions bubbled up inside of him. Emotions that felt too strong to be comfortable. It scared him. He didn’t want to admit them. He didn’t want to think of them. 

Jealousy.

Eventually, Mira and Gabriel’s antics calmed down, and they traded numbers for future reference. They shared a few laughs as all three of them walked up to the front to pay and gave one more hug before Gabriel headed out for the day. Just as Deimos thought he could finally relax, Gabriel yanked him suddenly and wrapped an arm around him. 

“Word of advice,” he said calmly. Mira looked at Gabriel, shocked. Deimos stilled underneath his touch. “Don’t date this rascal, she’s insane.” He patted his back and headed for the door, waving goodbye. “I’d know because I’ve done it!” He laughed and exited the store. 

Hotly, Deimos whipped his head in Mira’s direction. 

“You dated him?” He asked incredulously, shocked at himself for how angry he sounded. Mira blinked up at him, surprised. It sort of pulled him out of whatever angry mood he was in. 

Nervously, Mira rubbed her neck and glanced at the cashier in the front. She grabbed her things and quickly headed out, Deimos following behind. After a few long steps away from the store, she swirled around and looked at him. 

“Yeah, I dated him,” she admitted. She had a mixed expression that Deimos couldn’t understand. 

“Sorry,” he blurted out. “I sounded way too angry back there.”

Mira blinked up at him in surprise. “Oh,” she sputtered out. “No, don’t worry, it’s all good. I should have introduced Gabriel as my…ex-boyfriend.”

Deimos bit his lip and stared at her. “Can I…learn a little bit about him?”

Her eyes widened. “Y-Yeah, of course!” She nodded vigorously. 

 

Mira couldn’t stop nervously playing with her hands as Deimos calmly listened to her. They sat on a nearby park bench with the warm sun spilling over them. Deimos was quiet as she spoke, his eyes trained on his shoes or his fingernails. 

“Gabriel and I met in grade ten, and after I was horrifically dumped by Raven in grade eleven, he was my rebound,” she murmured. “We had an on-and-off relationship throughout my grade eleven and twelve year. Sort of open-ended, we kind of just came to each other when we were lonely.” She felt her face burn up. “He’s been my only male partner.”

Deimos looked at her with an expression she’s never seen before. Shock, confusion. His eyebrows furrowed but the rest of his face was calm and still. He was thinking hard and Mira wondered what ticked on in his head. 

“The longest we’ve dated is a month,” she laughed. “It’s kind of pathetic.”

“You guys look at each other as if you’ve been dating for years,” Deimos muttered quietly. 

Mira blushed. She couldn’t tell him that their relationship was very similar to that. “We’ve known each other for four years overall, so you’re not completely wrong,” she laughed nervously. “My…love life is a little messy.”

“Tell me,” Deimos said calmly. He gave her a look that made her feel butterflies. “I want to…understand you, Mira.”

Mira let out the breath she was holding in when Deimos looked back at his shoes and patiently waited for Mira to speak. 

“U-Um,” she stuttered. “I-I don’t know where to start… Even though I’ve liked Raven for several years, I still reached out to people who liked me immediately. I was a desperate kid, lonely, and yearned for the nearest warm body. Even though I liked Raven romantically and sexually, I still went out and found partners that tried to satisfy my devoid romantic and sex life. Gabriel was one of them, the rest were girls. Girls similar to my situation, girls that just wanted to fuck, girls who genuinely liked me but I couldn’t reciprocate their feelings. They came and went, but Gabriel was a constant thing, drifting to me and then back until he moved away in the middle of August after we graduated.” 

Mira paused, laughing cynically at herself. “Now that I think about it, after Gabriel left, the amount of partners I had doubled.” It was like she was trying to fill two voids in her heart over the summer. One of Raven and one of Gabriel. 

“Do you like Gabriel?” Deimos asked suddenly. 

“Like, romantically or sexually?”

“Both.”

Mira blushed hard. She remembered nights with him. She remembered his kisses. She remembered laughing under sheets, she remembered his moans, she remembered movie dates with him. “I did like him sexually,” she admitted. “I-I don’t know romantically. We acted like friends, hugged a lot, kissed a lot, but I never told him I loved him…” She wondered what would happen if she said that to him. Would have Gabriel stayed? Would she be dating him still? Would she be happier? 

Mira glanced at Deimos. He kept staring at her and it frightened Mira how much her heart sped up. She tried to play it off as a joke, chuckling and rubbing her neck nervously. “I’m confusing, sorry.”

Deimos sighed and leaned back. “I didn’t think you’d be such a player.”

Mira’s heart twisted in knots and she laughed loudly in a fit of nervousness. She hasn’t spoken about her previous relationships with a stranger before. Usually she kept it to herself or the individuals already knew about it through rumors. She’s never had to explain herself before and she didn’t know if she liked it or not. 

Calmly, Deimos wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her shoulder. “Thanks for telling me.” 

Mira touched his hand and looked at him. “Y-Yeah.”

Slowly, Deimos inhaled and exhaled, resting his forehead against her shoulder. “I’ve dated a few girls here and there. My…third girlfriend got me into wearing lingerie,” his voice was tight and nervous. The hand that rubbed Mira’s shoulder clutched tight onto her arm and Mira’s heart sped up. “She was…emotionally abusive.”

Mira’s heart stopped and every thought talking about how good he smelled and how intimate they were and how worried she was on how their relationship was inching closer and closer to her previous relationship with Gabriel was silenced. She just listened to his voice. 

“She was a childhood friend. She was slightly aware about how much I liked feminine things and took advantage of that. When I went over to her house, she’d beg me to wear her clothes to the point where I found myself in her underwear. She’d egg me on to wear her lingerie in public and manipulate me into feeling bad when I didn’t. I…liked lingerie before dating her, but first started wearing it after dating her.”

Mira stared at him in shock. “So…are you happy wearing lingerie or…?”

Deimos gave her a weak smile. “I am. I do love lingerie. I like how it feels and it makes me feel good. But…she did give me this fear of sharing how much I liked feminine things. It’s mostly gone away now, but it does sometimes haunt me at night.” Mira knew Deimos was holding stuff back. He was even more locked up and hesitant than she was. 

Quickly, Mira grabbed Deimos’ hands and clutched them tightly, staring at him wide. “There’s nothing wrong with liking lingerie and jewelry and feminine things. There’s _absolutely nothing wrong with that._ Deimos, you’re beautiful and handsome and kind and funny the way you are. And I’ll tell you every single day from now on if you ever feel sad about that.”

A smile quirked up and he knocked his forehead against hers. “You know, you’re most of the reason why I’m so much more…relaxed and happy now. I was having a shitty time before you barfed in my car.”

Mira laughed. “If you ever need someone to talk to, I’m here. I’ll listen to all your worries, even if they’re stupid and petty ones that don’t need answers. I’m just…here for you. I love you so much.” She hugged him tightly. “God, your stupid ex-girlfriend doesn’t deserve you.”

Deimos laughed and hugged her back. “Well, without her help I wouldn’t have left Greece nor would you have walked in on me wearing lingerie.”

Mira smiled into his shoulder. He was being positive for once. She hugged him tightly. “God, Deimos, I love you.” She couldn’t hold herself back anymore. She was angry at his ex-girlfriend and she was angry at people who made him so closeted. She was angry that Deimos was abused emotionally and she was angry that he was so fucked that he needed to leave his home country to seek solace. She was so happy he met him and she was so, _so_ in love with him she couldn’t hold back. This love wasn’t sexual. It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t platonic. It was just _love_ without a label. She just loved him. He made her happy and he was there for her when she was lonely. She loved him so much she wanted to cry. 

Deimos sighed softly into her ear and hugged her even tighter. She felt small in his arms, safe, warm and protected. His hands were large and they clutched onto her dress tightly. “I love you too,” he muttered, his voice tight. In this moment, Mira knew he loved her the same way she loved him. 

For a while, they just nuzzled their faces into each other’s shoulders and hugged tightly. Then, Mira sighed and let go, looking at Deimos seriously. 

“Let’s go buy girly shit,” she said calmly. 

Deimos blinked and blushed. “W-What?” He stuttered, eyes widening. 

“If you’re up for it, let’s go to the mall and buy friendship bracelets and shit,” she stated. “If you’re ever feeling down, I want to be able to always be with you in the form of a cheap metal friendship bracelet made in China.” 

Mira could see the cogs moving in Deimos’ head. He knew she was doing this as a way to make him feel more comfortable about showing off what he liked. Mira’s done it before. She used to try to fit in and wear dresses and smile pretty and like boys. It took her a bit to come out of the closet and wear male clothes and cut her hair. She started small and made her way up. Deimos can do it too. He doesn’t have to outright flaunt that he likes feminine things, but at least feel comfortable expressing what he feels. 

“You’re fucking ridiculous,” he laughed. It was a genuine laugh that stretched across his whole face. “Sure, let’s do it.”

 

“Friendship bracelets, _really?_ ” Raven commented. Deimos looked up from Mira and his wrists to Raven who had magically popped out of nowhere. She peered down on them, two almost fully grown adults curled up in blankets watching Voltron and admiring the bracelets they bought a few days ago. 

Deimos’ heart sped up and instinctively hid his wrist from Raven. However, before he could bury his hands into the blankets, Mira laced their hands together and stared at him. With one look, she was able to make his nerves disappear. 

Proudly, Mira lifted up their hands and flaunted their cheap but cute gold-chained friendship bracelet. Deimos got half of a pink heart that said “best” and Mira got the other half that said “friends.” 

“We’re so cute, aren’t we,” she snickered. “I’m never taking this off.”

Raven raised an eyebrow and sat on the edge of the couch. “We never got friendship bracelets.”

“That’s because I didn’t love you as much as Deimos,” Mira sneered, hugging him tightly. Deimos felt his face burn as Raven smirked at them. 

“You guys are so cute,” she snickered. 

“I know we are,” Mira bragged, kissing the side of Deimos’ head. His heart did flips. “We also got some space jewelry.”

“Oh no,” Raven laughed. “Deimos, how much money did you spend? You know this animal is nuts for space.”

He laughed nervously. “She paid for her own shit, I didn’t try to judge.” This conversation made his head dizzy. He expected Raven to be fine with him liking jewelry, she was Mira’s (second) best friend, but didn’t expect her to just…not care? She was so relaxed and chill with the whole situation. 

“We got matching planet bracelets,” Mira said excitedly. She showed off her other wrist, which dangled a leather bracelet with a small Mars pendant. “Deimos got Venus because he’s the Goddess of _Love and Beauty._ ” 

He blushed and showed off his other wrist, which indeed was identical to Mira’s for the exception of the Venus pendant. 

“And Mira got Mars, God of War, because she’s always picking fights,” he laughed nervously. Raven giggled and Mira shot finger guns. 

“You got me,” Mira sniggered. “Hey, Raven, remember when we made those woven bracelets in middle school?”

Raven rolled her eyes. “Oh god, don’t remind me of middle school.”

“Do you remember how to make them? We should totally make them again!” Mira bounced up and down excitedly. “I totally have string from a previous sculpture project lying around here.”

Raven and Deimos exchanged looks. 

“I’ll probably remember how to make some if we look at video tutorials,” Raven shrugged. She rolled up her sleeves. “I was the bracelet-making _master_ back in the day.”

“Oh my god, you’re kidding,” Deimos laughed. 

“I’m not,” Raven smiled. She got up and wandered around to find her laptop. Meanwhile, Mira rolled out of the little nest they made and looked for string. After some shouting and laughs, all three bordering adults were sitting on the ground in front of the coffee table making woven bracelets. String, scissors and beads cluttered the table, as well as a few cans of beer and chips. Raven wasn’t kidding she was the master at weaving bracelets and she pumped out three beautiful multicoloured bracelets in one episode of Voltron while Mira and Deimos were struggling to make one. Deimos’ first two were really shitty, but Mira was a hoarder and took them happily in exchange of a pastel rainbow one with three little pearls in it. It was cute and Deimos was going to reluctantly treasure it. It gave him new vigor and passion to make a black and white one for Mira with a little pink crystal bead at the end. She wore it immediately. They actually finished Voltron in the process of making a bunch of bracelets and Mira laughed at Deimos’ rage at the ending. (It was a cliff hanger!)

Raven egged them to watch Stranger Things, Deimos this time in a position of power since he’s already watched the season while Mira was all new to this. She yelped in surprise and clung onto him in the opening scene, and shouted obscenities after the one decent character, the Chef who helped Eleven, died (spoiler alert). After they finished episode 3, all three of them had made an unreasonably large amount of bracelets. Deimos was able to make a bracelet with the colours of the bisexual flag, Mira made one with the colours of the pansexual flag, as well as receiving a godly gift of a pink intricately braided bracelet made by the master herself, Raven. 

By the time Sophie, Annie and Daniel came home, the three of them had made seven each and Mira gladly gave hers away to her friends. Daniel and Annie joined them on the ground to make some bracelets while Sophie stole some beers to chug away. Eventually, it got to the point where it turned into a full-on slumber party with hair braiding and manicures when Dani, Renee and Micheal, Renee’s boyfriend, came home. Renee was a part-time nail artist, _another master,_ and proudly showed off her vast collection of nail polishes to the group. Apparently Micheal was the usual muse and showed off his long, multi-chrome nails. 

Somehow, Deimos ended up curled up on a single-seated couch with Mira painting his nails black and accent finger shimmery grey. Everyone was happily chatting and joking around with Renee’s nail polish doing each other’s nails or makeup. Mira was extra concentrated on making Deimos’ nails perfect, her tongue sticking out and eyebrows furrowed as she painted his nails. Deimos smiled a little, amused at her concentration face as she gently held his hands and fingers. Beside him, Daniel was being attacked by his drunken girlfriend as she tried her best to paint his toenails, but ended up just laughing hard as she tickled his feet. Micheal was painting Raven’s fingers with careful precision while Renee did Sophie’s. 

Everything felt so… _normal._ It was like all the puzzle pieces fit together and Deimos was supposed to end up here. All the shit he’s gone through has led him up to this perfect moment when he’s inches away from the girl he’s absolutely in love with, her hands in his, their bodies pressing against each other, and surrounded by people he can call his friends. 

Deimos wanted to kiss Mira. He wanted to be with Mira. God, the emotions that welled up inside him were overwhelming, almost taking him whole. He wanted to cry, he wanted to laugh, and he wanted to kiss the shit out of her. She was such a source of his every day happiness it scared him. He just wanted her. He wanted to be able to kiss Mira like Annie and Daniel do. He wanted to look at her the way Renee and Micheal do. He wanted to laugh and hug her the way Gabriel and Mira do. 

“There, done,” Mira finally exclaimed, her face bright and smiley. “Now we match.” She had the inverted colour scheme on her hands: shimmery grey with her accented nail black. Happily, she pressed their palms together, a cute gesture to show how big Deimos’ hands were compared to hers, and Deimos couldn’t help but lace their hands together.

“Comfortable with this?” Mira asked, referring to his nails painted. 

“Yeah,” he mumbled. “I could get used to this.” Not referring to his nails painted.

“I’ll learn from Renee’s magical skills to do cooler designs,” she said happily. 

“Thanks,” Deimos chuckled. He stared at her and she stared back. Slowly, Deimos kissed her cheek. When he pulled back, Mira’s smile dropped and her face was red. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the love and support guys <3


	7. Painted Lips

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deimos is Mira's muse. Why can't he see that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> buddy im just throwing these chapters out here with no plan in mind  
> thanks for all the kudos guys you've been all great <3  
> but get ready for everything to fall apart h a h a h a 
> 
> warning: dubious consent

“Gabriel, stop taking photos of me,” Mira said as she cleaned her paintbrush. Gabriel reclined across her couch, his face hiding behind his stupidly expensive camera. Just to spite her, he took one more shot with an annoyingly hissy click of his camera. Mira smirked and threw a wad of tissue at him. 

“Hey, this thing’s expensive,” he said as he swatted it away. 

“Imagine how many meals you lost out buying that thing,” Mira joked. She got up from her seat and stretched, staring at the fresh painting she’s been working on. Abstract and colourful with the hint of a human form, just Mira’s style. She’s gotten antsy over the break and couldn’t stop herself from painting. Usually, days like these were quiet times and “me-time,” but Gabriel texted her blackmailing her with free coffee to come over. It’s been almost a year since they’ve seen each other so Mira wasn’t so irked by him. Thankfully, he was still casual as ever and carried on whatever he was doing without disturbing her. 

“Coming from the kid who buys the most expensive paints in the world,” Gabriel sassed calmly. 

Mira rolled her eyes at him. “I hate every inch of your body and soul.”

He shot finger guns at her and Mira dramatically got shot. They both snickered at each other. 

“Been a while since we’ve done some dumb shit like this,” Gabriel sighed. “Last time it was in your childhood home. Now look at this,” he gestured to the house, “You’ve got your own little home overflowing with creativity.”

“Half the people who live here are artists, I don’t know what you’d expect,” Mira pointed out. 

“So cool,” Gabriel smiled. “My house is a pigsty.” 

“That’s because you decided to live with _Cameron_ and _Lee.”_

“Hey, you had a crush on Lee in grade ten.”

“For about a minute before he burped in my face.”

Gabriel laughed. “He still does that now.”

“God,” Mira wrinkled her nose and plopped down beside him. “I don’t understand how you can stand him.”

“Hey, Sophie is pretty gross too, she’s the queen at burping,” Gabriel pointed out. Mira shrugged. 

“I guess you’re right about that.”

“How’s life?” Gabriel asked, turning onto his side and resting his head on the couch. 

“Repetitive. Work, art, eat, sleep, you know the drill,” Mira shrugged, also rolling onto her side and resting her head on the couch. 

“Raven told me half the time you’re with Deimos,” Gabriel sneered. 

“We’re not dating,” she droned. 

“What would you do if I stole him from you?” Gabriel snickered. 

Mira paused. This felt like déjà vu. She chose her words carefully. “Good luck with that.”

Gabriel laughed. “What’s so hard?”

“He’s a shy dork,” she snickered. “Though you guys have some stuff in common.”

“Like what?” He egged on. 

Gabriel was the epitome of what Deimos wanted. He looked like the balance of both genders, masculine and feminine with his broad shoulders yet slim waist. One day he could tie his hair in a bun and hide it with a beanie and look like the hottest man in the world, and the next he could let it down, wear makeup and look like the most beautiful woman in the world. He loved wearing crop tops and high waisted pants, he loved wearing baggy long sweaters and drop-crotch sweats. Gabriel loved both sides of the spectrum and embraced them. 

He also loved bralettes. 

“Stuff,” Mira murmured. She stared at the choker Gabriel wore. 

“You’ve got to be more specific, dude,” he whined. “I wanna get to know him.”

“You think he’s hot, don’t you?” Mira sneered. 

“Well, no shit.”

“Would you seriously make a move on him?” 

“Yes,” he responded instantly. 

Mira studied his expression. “If I was him, I’d fall for you too.” Gabriel was incredibly pretty. They’d make a good pair. 

“I’m surprised how easily you gave him away.” Gabriel cocked an eyebrow. 

“He’s not mine.”

“You’re probably his.”

Mira laughed. “What makes you think that?”

“The way he looks at you is the same way I looked at you in high school,” he muttered calmly. 

Mira blinked, shocked. “What are you saying?”

“I was incredibly in love with you in high school,” Gabriel sighed. “But too insecure to keep the relationship going since you were super in love with Raven.”

Mira laughed. Her face was probably red. “Sorry about that.”

“Do you still like her?”

She hummed. “Not…as a partner. I love her as a cherished friend.”

“You struggled a lot in high school, I’m happy you’re over her,” Gabriel murmured, rubbing her leg softly. 

“Deimos helped me out of that slump,” Mira laughed. “He’s been a great friend.” Sort of like how Gabriel was back then. 

“Mira,” Gabriel said suddenly. The girl quieted down and her smile dropped. “Would you take another chance with me if you had the opportunity?”

She stared at him. “I…don’t know. Our relationship hasn’t been the sturdiest.”

“Yes, but we’re in university now and basically adults with functioning brains not influenced by hormones now,” he pointed out. The hand that rubbed her leg stayed on her thigh. “I missed you a lot, Mira.”

“I thought this was about you thirsting for Deimos.”

“I can also admit I like you a lot still.”

“Are you sure? I’m not the same Mira from high school. Seventeen year old me and nineteen year old me aren’t the same.”

“What about you? I’m definitely not the same kid you made out on Raven’s bed.”

Mira blushed. “I will admit you’re extremely beautiful now.”

“Is that enough to warrant a kiss?”

“Is anything wrong, Gabriel?”

“No, I just miss you.”

Somehow, Mira ended up pinned to the couch. She sighed staring at him. Doing this makes her no different from her seventeen year old self. Horny, stupid, needy. She still longs for a warm body still and maybe even more now because of how fucking invested she is with Deimos. Gabriel probably knows he’s just another outlet for Mira to vent out her frustrations on. 

“You deserve better.”

“I like you.”

Mira sighed and closed her eyes. Gabriel kissed her softly and Mira instantly melted to his taste. He groaned when her hands slipped to his groin and teased him softly. 

 

Deimos laid on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He gasped out, speechless and writhed in his sheets. The quiet humming sound of his prostate vibrator filled the room, the noise deafening to his ears. Sweat dripped down his temple to his neck, his whole body covered in it. His legs wouldn’t stop shaking, the sensation and emotions and trembling overwhelming his melting brain. Pain and pleasure mixed together into a deadly concoction that left him drowning and drooling, his eyes fluttering open and shut sporadically. He gasped and spread his legs, feeling the phantom sensation of a body on top of him, of a body inside of him. Closing his eyes, he focused on the searing pleasure as his little toy abused his prostate, his insides throbbing painfully from overstimulation. He devoured the sensation, tasted it and relished in it.

He imagined Mira’s eyes on him, Deimos lying on the bed, shaking legs spread out. He imagined how she’d bite her lips, how a little playful smile would stretch across her face. He imagined her hands on him, sliding up his stomach to his chest, her small body snaking up with it, her tongue leaving a wet trail up his navel to his nipple. 

He also imagined another body, a body familiar to his own, of someone he saw in a dream, of someone he saw on the street. He’d appear at the foot of the bed and grab Deimos by the ankles, dragging him to the edge of the bed and lick up his leg. His long cock would sway between his legs and brush against Deimos’ other leg, the boy twitching in anticipation. Deimos throbbed for him, stretched his hole open for him, and took every inch of him. This mystery man with long, slender limbs and delicate lips, yet with powerful thighs and punishing thrusts. His cock made Deimos cry out and turn his insides to jelly, his body relishing and shaping to his form. His insides drowned in him, his inner thighs sopping wet of his seed. 

Mira would be watching right beside Deimos, her mischievous smile never leaving her lips and heated stare locked on him forever. She’d tease his nipples and lick his fingers. Slowly, she’d slip her fingers into Deimos’ favourite pink lace panties and pleasure herself at the sight of Deimos being fucked by another man. She’d kiss his neck and tell him he was a good boy and tug on the collar he wore. She’d kiss the other warm body and he would slip his hand into her panties and make her go insane. The man would retract his fingers from Mira’s pussy and present her dripping juices to Deimos. 

Deimos would lick his fingers clean and Mira would fucking chuckle at him. 

Deimos remembered when Mira fell asleep on top of him after her last final exam. He remembered how she smelled and how she curled herself on top of him for warmth. He remembered how he threw away his phone and wrapped his arms around her, inhaling her scent, relishing in her heat, feeling how delicate and soft she was. He remembered awkwardly reaching for a spare blanket to put on top of them and he remembered when she woke up six hours afterwards. He remembered how she couldn’t believe what she had done, but ended up just giggling underneath the sheets with him, her cheek pressed against his chest, her lips pulled up into the brightest smile. Deimos found himself laughing and hugged her, both of them giggling into jittery relief. 

Deimos moaned out and ejaculated. He felt it splatter onto his stomach, his cum hot against his sweaty skin. He rolled over and got onto his knees, reaching for the vibrator and clicking it off. He felt lube drip down his leg and his cock hung heavily between his legs. Gasping, he removed his little toy with one more groan and jolt of his thighs and collapsed on the bed. The same bed that Mira’s slept on countless of times before. The same bed Deimos has masturbated on millions of times before. The side Mira has slept on was the side Deimos bounced on a thick dildo once. The edge of the bed she’s sat on was the same spot where he jacked off after she left. The shower she’s used has been subjected to almost daily masturbation sessions when he’s horny and lazy. All the lingerie he’s worn has been for his own sexual pleasure. The black bralette with roses Mira caught him wearing at the night of the party was rough against his nipples and turned him on in class one time. The cotton pink bralette she caught in their exam has hid nipple clamps before. The black lace bralette she saw for the first time hid taped vibrators. The white bralette and panties she licked and touched became a hot item to wear when he was horny now. 

For what felt like years, Deimos lied in his bed. A wave of shame came over him. Shame for being so dirty, so needy, so hungry for his best friend. It was immature and stupid. But tonight what came over him was different- different than all the other nights he’s fucked into his hand. It was powerful. So powerful he felt like crying. Not only did he want Mira, he wanted someone else. Someone who could satisfy another side of his needs. Someone with a cock. Deimos was dirty. Disgusting. He was shameful for wanting such a girl, yet not desiring her at all. A shadow figure with the same sex as him, someone to devour him whole. Mira couldn’t be enough to satisfy this whole in his heart, this loneliness tonight, he needed _another one._

Deimos closed his eyes, feeling tears slip from his eyes down his face. 

He needed to lock this away. Forget that this ever happened. Never think of such thoughts again. Mira was enough. 

_Mira was fucking everything._

Sighing, Deimos rolled out of his bed and stood up, looking at his curtained window. It felt odd to be standing in his apartment naked and alone, the cool air conditioned breeze reaching every inch of his body. It’s been a while since he’s masturbated naked. It’s been a while since he’s felt so, _so_ fucking alone. 

 

“Is this necessary.”

“Hey, you’re my muse.”

“But seriously? Painting my face?”

“I know it’s itchy. And I’m also painting your hands.”

“Are you fucking kidding me…”

“You guys are cute.”

“Shut up,” Deimos hissed. Gabriel smirked at him and popped another chip into his mouth. Mira rolled her eyes and grabbed Deimos’ cheek again. He blinked rapidly as Mira applied a thick coat of white paint down his nose. Half of his face looked normal, the other half looked like something out of an impressionist painting. Blues, reds, yellows and pinks accented his skin, highlighting and shading the curves of his cheekbones and bringing attention to his vibrant green eyes. Mira was almost finished painting his nose and had to only worry about his lips and chin next. 

“Why the hell is he here anyway?” Deimos said suddenly, breaking Mira’s concentration.

“Well you’re being photographed so obviously you need a photographer expert,” Gabriel smiled, swirling around in Mira’s favourite leather chair. 

“I don’t like him one bit,” he replied bluntly. 

Mira laughed. “It’s good to know you guys are comfortable with each other.”

“Really though, it’s been our…fifth time meeting?” Gabriel chirped up. 

“You slapped my ass the third time we met.”

“He slaps everyone’s ass,” Mira muttered, going back to painting his nose. 

“Now punching someone straight in the chest after their ass getting slapped? That’s abnormal,” Gabriel joked. 

“I think that’s a reasonable response,” Mira pointed out. 

“I’ll do it again,” Deimos spat. Mira smirked at him. He acted like an angry Pomeranian. Small, harmless, angry and cute. (Even though he was the tallest between the three of them)

Gabriel rolled his eyes and munched on another chip. 

“I’m working on your lips now, talk and I’m shoving the paintbrush in your mouth,” Mira said as she cleaned her paintbrush and dabbed some purples under his nose. 

Deimos rolled his eyes and quietly let her do his lips. 

“Well now that the beast is silenced, we should go get dinner later and watch a movie,” Gabriel said as Mira stared at Deimos’ kissable lips. “Deimos can come if he wants.”

“I thought you liked Deimos,” Mira sneered. 

“Hey, thought that was a secret between both of us.”

“Like you keep secrets.”

“Incredible. When I thought seventeen year old Mira wasn’t savage enough, nineteen year old Mira is even worse.”

“Blame it on Deimos.”

“Damn, another thing I really like about him.”

Deimos’ eyebrow furrowed. With one look, Mira knew he was basically communicating, _“Guys, I’m still fucking here and listening.”_

Mira was surprised by how casual Gabriel was with Deimos. Or more notably how casual Deimos with Gabriel. The first time they met was a shitshow, partly because Mira never formally introduced Gabriel as her ex to Deimos, which didn’t help the second time they met because Gabriel was in full-on flirting mode. Which Deimos despised. Round three was even worse because of the said butt slap and punch in the chest happened, but thankfully round four seemed to smooth out because Deimos was slowly getting used to Gabriel’s advances and knew how to shoot him down. 

“Seriously though.” Gabriel suddenly interrupted Mira’s zone again and wrapped an arm around her. “Let’s go get dinner and watch a movie.”

Deimos and Mira exchanged looks. They were planning to just sleep around the house afterwards, but from the quirk of the eyebrow he gave her, Mira assumed a decent meal and lying around a theatre would be good too. 

“Fine.” Mira waved him off. “What movie do you wanna go see?”

“Have you seen all of the good ones already?”

“Absolutely.”

Deimos smiled at her and she smiled back. Gabriel fell back onto the couch and scrolled through his phone, pouting a little. Mira finished up his lips and chin and worked a little on his neck, making him tilt up his chin and giving her free reign to his neck. Since he was being turned into an art piece, Mira asked him to remove his shirt to not distract away from the painting on his face, and gave Mira every opportunity possible to touch his bare chest. She knew he was hesitant about it and to not make it awkward, invited Gabriel to come over. She was in love with his body, she couldn’t deny it. His lightly tanned skin, his full figure, his…perk nipples. God, she hasn’t been this close to a semi-nude Deimos since the Incident. She tried to play it cool, but every few minutes, she’d glance down at his chest and see how his nipples were still hard and pink. She wanted to touch him. She already was, but she wanted to slide her cold paintbrush down his neck, across his collarbones and tease his nipples. She wanted to tease them with cold paint and with a dry soft brush. She wanted Deimos pinned underneath her while she tortured him slowly with the flick of her tongue. She wanted to kiss him. She wanted to taste him. She wanted to fuck him. 

At some point, Mira realized how incredibly sexy Deimos was. It might be from sketching and painting him constantly now because of the upcoming exhibit. It might be from finally accepting the fact that she’s looked up porn that specifically referenced Deimos’ kinks or looks. It might be from the fact that she licked and sucked his nipples before. 

Mira swallowed thickly and looked at Deimos. He looked back, his eyes softening to her gaze. 

“God, you’re so beautiful,” Mira blurted out. Deimos blinked and glanced at the hand that rested on his chest. Mira didn’t even realize she was touching him and shyly retracted away. However, Deimos grabbed her and laced their fingers together. 

Mira’s face blossomed red. She knew she had slipped up. Slowly, Deimos brought her fingers up to his lips and suddenly playfully bit her knuckles. She held her breath. 

“Hurry up,” he hissed. With the inclusion of paint, Mira didn’t know if Deimos was blushing like mad or if he was truly this suave. The girl let out a tiny gasp and took back her hand, feeling his teeth and tongue on her knuckle still. Thankfully, the paint was dry and she didn’t need to fix his lips, not that she would mind touching his lips more. 

“Are you guys seriously flirting while I’m trying to talk to you?” Gabriel called suddenly. Two arms wrapped around Mira’s waist and Gabriel’s face popped up on her right. His eyes were big and he was pouting. 

“S-Sorry,” Mira stuttered. Gabriel frowned at her, his eyebrows raised in curiosity. 

“I was asking you guys if you wanted to watch Wonder Woman or Guardians of the Galaxy?” He repeated. 

Mira glanced at Deimos and he shrugged. “Wonder Woman,” he replied. 

“Wonder Woman,” Mira echoed back. 

“Wonder Woman it is,” he smiled. “Hey, you wanna go to Lee’s work for dinner? He works at a great pizza place.”

“Sure.”

Gabriel smiled at them brightly. “Great, a poly date!”

Deimos frowned. “Poly?”

“Polyamory,” Mira specified. “Individual with multiple partners. Gabriel’s polyamorous.”

“Hell yeah I am,” he sneered and stood up. He massaged Mira’s neck and back. “Mira’s poly-curious.”

“I just don’t care,” she pointed out. 

“Oh,” Deimos blinked. 

Mira looked at him concerned. “Sorry, this is probably new to you-”

“No, it’s ok,” he said quickly. He looked at Gabriel and picked at his nails. “I’m just surprised you didn’t tell me sooner…”

Fuck, that stung. Mira was never good at opening up, especially with subjects like these. She didn’t know where Deimos stood on the multiple partners thing. Having a girlfriend and having girlfriends are two different things. She bit her lip nervously. “Sorry, the topic never came up.”

“You don’t have to apologize,” he said quickly, suddenly aware of his comment. His hand touched Mira’s cheek and she smiled and kissed it softly. 

“You’re my best friend, dude,” she laughed. “I have to tell you stuff.”

Deimos frowned. Gabriel on the other hand, was just calmly watching them. And pouting again. And Mira knew exactly how he felt. She’s known him for years, of course she knows how he feels. Jealous, betrayed. But by who? 

 

Deimos was one step away from scratching and peeling off all the paint on his face and hands. God, this paint was for canvases, not for his fucking skin. It fucking burned and itched like a bitch. Yeah, he looked magical and cool because of Mira’s skills, but it didn’t make up from the fact that his face was on fire. Sighing, he sat in front of a white wall while Mira and Gabriel set up the lights and camera. Gabriel gave Mira hugs when she didn’t expect it and whispered into her ear casually. Deimos wished he was desensitized to it already, but he fucking was not. He might be better had hiding how fucking petty and jealous he was though. 

The both of them chatted quietly among themselves as Gabriel positioned the camera, looking at Deimos with intensity he wasn’t ready for. Mira’s eyes ran down his figure, calm, serious and calculated, the intense expression she gave to her artworks when she was planning out a game plan. She quickly left the room and came back with some gel and instantly ran her fingers through his hair. She gave Deimos no warning and he shivered at her cold touch as her fingers ran down his scalp. He didn’t want to whimper to her sudden invasiveness, but he did. It freaked him out how good it felt having her fingers running through his hair. He tried not to think about her grabbing his hair in other situations. He tried not to. 

“Alright, even more pretty,” Mira said, smiling brightly at him. She bopped his nose and left him dying inside while she hurried back to Gabriel. 

Deimos couldn’t stop thinking about Mira’s hands in his hair. 

After a few standard profile shots were taken, Mira experimented more with Deimos’ poses and walked back onto set to move his head or arm in place. Her hands were hot and several times she slid her hand to the bottom of his back. He tried not to freak out at how sensitive he was but Gabriel noticed. Mira had ran back into the living room to retrieve some more paint and clothes when Gabriel walked onto the set and grabbed his chin. 

“I know you want Mira to fuck you, but chill out,” he hissed. 

Deimos stared at him wide-eyed. He was about to bark back a response, but Mira came in rambling about how she wanted him to put on his shirt again and then afterwards paint his feet. Gabriel smirked at him and retreated back to the camera. 

Instead of thinking about kissing the shit out of Mira, Deimos thought about strangling Gabriel. It made his clothed shots more intense and Mira liked it, however after painting his feet and leaving him just in his underwear, his pissed off expression gained a lot of criticism from her. 

“You’re supposed to look like an Adonis, not a Deimos,” Gabriel sneered. 

“Fuck off, Gabriel,” Deimos barked. Mira glared at Gabriel. 

“What?” Gabriel smiled. 

“Gabriel, go in the living room, I’ll finish the shoot,” Mira snapped. 

“Are you sure you don’t need me?” 

“Yes, I’m capable,” she hissed. He rolled his eyes and sauntered out of the studio. Mira closed and locked the door behind him. Dramatically, she sighed. 

“Sorry, he can be a dick sometimes,” she muttered, pushing her hair out of her face. 

“Do you mean every time?” Deimos pointed out. 

She sighed again and shook his head. “He genuinely is a great guy.”

“Hard to tell.”

“Do you feel uncomfortable with him here?” Mira walked over onto set and sat beside him. 

“No,” he paused and looked at her. His heart raced. “I’m just jealous of him.” He couldn’t fucking hold it in anymore. 

Mira blinked at him. “…There’s,” her voice was so soft, “There’s no need to be jealous of him. You’re my muse, remember?”

He sighed and shrugged. “He’s…just...” He wanted to kiss her. He could kiss her. It would make sense. He could finally just give up. 

“I love you more than I love Gabriel,” she said suddenly. Deimos’ eyes snapped wide open. “I’ll say it over and over again to prove my point.”

“Y-You’re,” he stuttered. _He stuttered._ He’s never felt so nervous in his life. “…I-I love you too.”

She smiled at him and rubbed his arm. “Do you think you can do a few more shots?”

He chuckled. “Dude, I can go for an extra four hours without him in here.”

She chuckled back and pushed the hair out of his face. “Ok. Where are your boundaries right now?”

“What do you mean?”

Mira’s cheeks turned red. “There’s this one shot I’d like to do…but that requires you to take off your underwear.”

“Oh,” he said bluntly. 

Mira’s face got redder. “You would be shielded, I’d get the backside of you, but if you’re not ok with that, then it’s fine! I absolutely won’t be mad.”

Deimos fantasized about this in a dream. Without the paint all over him.

He breathed in and out. “Ok.” 

Mira’s panicked expression dropped. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. Thank god there was paint hiding his blush. 

“Are you absolutely sure, though?” Mira frowned. 

“Yeah,” he repeated. “You’ve been imagining this haven’t you?”

She bit her lip and nodded. 

“Ok, thank you,” she smiled. “Oh, but first, we need to paint the rest of your arms and knees.” 

_“For fucks sake, Mira-”_

* * * 

Deimos leaned over Mira to see the camera’s monitor. 

He was there. It was weird seeing him. 

He was there, his back to the camera, his hands, arms, face, knees, legs and feet painted. His private parts were well out of view as he draped his body across the white floor, the leg nearest to the camera stretched out while the other was folded. He balanced his weight on the hand furthest from the camera and bent the other. His face was in profile, lips slightly parted, eyes distantly looking at the lens and expression shy and timid. Instead of his nude figure being the main focus, it was more about the paint. The white floor was painted wherever his skin touched, as if the colours from the ground was being sucked up and soaked into his skin. It was oddly beautiful. He was beautiful. He’s never felt that way about himself. 

“You look perfect,” Mira whispered. Excitedly, she looked up at him and suddenly grabbed his face. With one yank, her lips fell onto his, and then they were gone, Mira running out the door to show Gabriel. 

 

Mira stood in front of the washroom mirror, staring at her face. Women came and went through the washroom, glancing at this frozen-still mess of a girl staring at her reflection. She probably looked insane, staring so blankly at the mirror like that. None of the ladies knew she was having a meltdown inside. It’s not like a quick panic attack meltdown she has almost every day, but more flames, death-and-lava kind of situation. She just wanted to throw herself into a volcano. She wanted to walk straight into Hell. 

Mira kissed Deimos. 

She didn’t mean to. It’s just that she’s thought about this shot for a long time, and finally it came into fruition. She’s seen how beautiful Deimos is, with clothes and not, and to be able to add her own personal touch seemed unworldly. He was unworldly. God-like looks, a kind heart, a loveable dork. He didn’t seem real how _perfect_ he was. How the colours on her brush suited so nicely on his skin, how his hips curved in the rightest ways, how green his eyes were. And to think Mira could immortalize his _beauty-_ something took over. Something overwhelming and happy and relieved and ecstatic, it took over her senses. She was so happy. It was like she had just ran a marathon, her heart pumping a mile a minute, her mind just zoned on him and her instincts kicked in. 

She kissed Deimos. 

She specifically smashed her lips against his when his face was still painted. When he still looked like an art piece. Mira’s insane. She’s ruined. There’s no going back. 

Mira lost it and hung her head low, sighing long and loudly. What the hell is she saying, she lost it when she licked and sucked Deimos’ nipples. _God she actually did that._

Biting her lip, Mira finally left the washroom and was assaulted by the savoury smell of gooey cheese and warm bread. It was dim in the pizza place, the golden-lit restaurant bustling with life. She saw her table at the corner of the restaurant, Deimos and Gabriel sitting across from each other and calmly chatting. Gabriel had that playful smirk that drove Deimos insane. It seemed to drive him twice insane now since Mira had suddenly devoted all her attention to Gabriel now. You know, to make up for the fact she kissed her best friend and avoided all confrontation. 

Heart thumping, she slid into the seat beside Deimos, since she had to play it cool and normal for Gabriel even though she was probably going to combust if Deimos touches her. Gabriel’s smile stretched even further and he bit his lip. 

“You took your time,” he said. 

Mira glared at him. “I got a little dizzy and sick in the bathroom. I haven’t slept in a while,” she lied. It was an overdramatic lie, but a statement she’s said before truthfully too many times to seem abnormal. Or at least she hoped so. Nervously, she fiddled with her hair. “Needed a breather.”

“Are you ok?” Deimos said suddenly. His hands slipped to her lower back and Mira indeed combusted internally. She wasn’t going to live a long and healthy life if she keeps on pining for Deimos. 

Mira smiled and nodded, hoping he couldn’t see her anguish. “Yeah, I’ll probably actually just crash at my place after dinner, if that’s ok?”

Gabriel and Deimos exchanged looks. 

“Well I guess it’s a date for two now,” Gabriel smirked. 

Deimos rolled his eyes. 

“Are you still up for Wonder Woman?” Mira asked Deimos. 

He looked worriedly at her and nodded. “Yeah, sure, fine. He’s paying anyway.”

“Who said I would pay?” Gabriel chuffed. 

“I did,” Deimos cracked a playful smile. It gave Mira butterflies. 

Gabriel bit his lip at Deimos’ sudden playfulness and shrugged. “Ok, fine.”

Before Mira could embarrass herself further, a hand grabbed her shoulder and a familiar laugh burst through the air. 

“Holy shit, you’re still so small!” Lee joked. Hotly, Mira turned around to see a tall Korean male dressed in red and yellow striped work clothes. Lee’s smile was blinding, his laughter boisterous. “Mira! How’s it been?!”

“Better with you out of my life,” Mira clapped back with a huge smug smirk. 

Lee looked like he was shot. “What a savage.”

“You know me.”

“Hey, Lee,” Gabriel called. 

“Hey, dickbag.” Lee shot him finger guns. Gabriel smiled back and shot them back. 

“What a gentleman,” Mira laughed. 

“You know it,” Lee wrapped an arm around her and squeezed her tightly. “It’s been forever.”

“It has been, hey- this is Lee, Deimos. And Lee, this is Deimos,” Mira chuckled. She leaned out of the way for Lee to happily stretch out his hands to shake the other’s hand. 

“I’m Lee, high school classmate,” Lee introduced. 

“Deimos, university classmate,” he replied back. 

“And Mira’s babysitter,” Gabriel added. 

Mira kicked him underneath the table. He snickered. “No he’s not,” she mumbled. She wanted to show off their friendship bracelets, but the moment she looked at Deimos she remembered she had kissed those lips. Gabriel and Lee bantered and quipped with each other, throwing insults like confetti with Mira occasionally popping in. Gabriel made an effort to include Deimos into the conversation, which Mira was grateful for, until Lee went back to work. The three of them went oddly silent afterwards, Gabriel humming and scrolling through his phone while Mira tried not to be the epitome of awkward beside Deimos. They ended up playing tic tac toe on a napkin until the pizza arrived and with the sudden wave of hunger that consumed her, Mira dove in and somehow forgot that she kissed Deimos for the rest of the night. It might be the pizza’s fault. She was able to laugh and touch him playfully without feeling like killing herself afterwards. It was nice. 

“Space kid or dinosaur kid?” Gabriel asked, pointing a fork (which Deimos made fun of because Gabriel eats pizza with a fork) at Deimos. 

“Space,” Deimos replied and bit into his seventh piece. 

“God, why are you both so similar,” Gabriel frowned. “Dinosaur kid.”

“Nerd,” Mira smirked, fist bumping Deimos. 

“Dweeb,” Gabriel stuck his tongue at her. 

“Ok, science fiction or fantasy,” Mira brought up. 

“Fantasy,” Gabriel and Deimos said together. Mira gasped. 

“I hate both of you,” she hissed. 

“Sorry, we’re so perfect,” Gabriel sighed, dramatically flipping his hair. 

“You just wanna fuck elves and ride dragons,” Mira pouted. 

“Yes, and it’s so much sexier than fucking aliens in space,” Gabriel sneered. 

Mira gasped and tried to kick him again. He snickered and got out of the way. 

After Deimos sipped half of his soda, he chirped up, “winter or summer?”

“Summer,” Gabriel replied. Mira paused and hummed. 

“My favourite season is fall though,” she mumbled. 

“You gotta choose,” Gabriel replied. 

“Summer,” she said finally. “Cozy sweaters and cuddles are great in the winter, but I hate the cloudy weather. It makes me depressed. I’d rather have summer and swim and watch summer blockbusters, and lie in the sun and cuddle at night when it’s cooler.”

Gabriel and Deimos smiled at her. It sort of made her heart flip. She’s definitely cuddled with both of them, though one has gone a little further after that. 

“Winter,” Deimos said calmly. “Summer stinks.”

“Wow, I feel attacked,” Gabriel gasped. He thought for a second before asking the next question with a smile. “Hugs or kisses?”

Mira laughed. 

“Kisses,” Deimos replied calmly. Mira looked at him and he looked straight at her. It made her heart do flips. His choice was intentional. 

“Hugs,” Mira said after swallowing thickly. She stared at her bubbling drink. 

“Kisses,” Gabriel murmured. 

Mira’s face flared up. She wanted to run away. She wanted to do a million things but this right now. 

“I never thought of you as a kisser, Deimos?” Gabriel chirped. “You seemed like a huge cuddler.”

She could feel both of their stares on her. She was too scared to look back. 

“Both are a win, really,” Deimos murmured. “Though, cuddling can be exclusively platonic while kissing is something you only share with someone you really love.”

Her hands were shaking. 

“That is true,” Gabriel hummed. 

She couldn’t take it anymore. Jittery, Mira grabbed her phone and cleared her throat. “Well, I think I better go home now, I-I’m getting a little tired.” She caved in and made a fool of herself. 

“I’ll drive you home?” Deimos asked, touching her shoulder. Mira avoided his stare like the plague and shook her head vigorously. 

“No, I can take the bus, it’s fine, have a nice night,” she spat out all at once. 

“Mira-”

“Bye, Deimos.”

 

“She’s definitely avoiding you,” Gabriel suddenly brought up after they paid for their meal and headed out the door. Deimos glared at him. 

“You brought it up,” he hissed, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

“I didn’t think she’d sprint out of the restaurant!”

“Well, she did, asshole,” Deimos grumbled, stomping over to his car. He felt a little hollow and empty now. Nauseatingly sad. Pissed off. Frustrated. 

_Mira rejected him._

“Did something happen between you two?” Gabriel asked as he slipped into the front seat, Mira’s seat. 

“No.”

“Was it the nude shot? Did you get a hard on or something?” 

Shocked, Deimos glared at him, his teeth barred. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“I’m not though,” Gabriel replied calmly. “Mira’s the type to overthink things and run away from her problems.”

Deimos sighed hotly and slammed his car door. “I fucking love Mira, ok?!” He barked angrily. “And fucking _shit,_ she kissed me and even though it was just a spur of the moment kind of thing, I’m just fucking-” He groaned and rubbed his face. “She’s just-” He gestured wildly. 

Gabriel was smiling at him and it just infuriated him further. 

“Shut the fuck up,” Deimos hissed. 

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You were thinking it.”

“You’re so cute, damn, Mira’s lucky.”

“Fuck off,” he groaned. He shot another malicious look at him. “You like her too, don’t you?”

Gabriel laughed and shrugged. He paused and sighed. “You know what, I don’t really like keeping secrets, so yeah, I like her. I’ve thoroughly made out with her a few times.”

Deimos’ eyes widened. His heart dropped and he felt even more nauseous. 

“Do you want to get punched in the chest again?” He hissed. He knew his behaviour was abnormal. He clutched onto the steering wheel tight. 

“Well, no,” he hummed. Suddenly, his hand was on his arm. “But, Deimos, you have to understand I like you as well.” 

His blood ran cold and suddenly Deimos found himself pinned to his door. This felt too...familiar. It felt like this has happened before-

“Do you like boys?” Gabriel asked softly. 

Deimos went still. He remembered when he was sixteen inside his best friend’s truck, kissing him, touching him, tasting him- 

He gasped a little when Gabriel touched his cheek. His thumb slid across his lips. 

“You’re avoiding the subject,” Deimos said suddenly. His head was pounding. 

“What’s there to avoid? I like you and Mira. I’ve kissed her a few times, but never went further than that,” he said bluntly. “And I think I know why.”

“Don’t give me false hope,” he growled. “I already know she couldn’t love me…she c-can’t. I’m abnormal. I’m rude and quiet and stupid a-and-”

“Dude, no you’re not, have you looked at yourself?” Gabriel frowned, his hand sliding to his neck. “You’re a wonderful guy.”

“What about you,” he barked. “Just _look at you._ You’re everything Mira loves. Beautiful, charming…y-you’re everything I wish I could be.”

Gabriel stared at him hard. “Do you want to be like me?”

“No, I don’t, I-I don’t know,” he hissed. He felt tears well up, but he didn’t dare to let them fall. “I-I’m just abnormal. I’m a freak. You’re an Adonis and I’m…a Deimos.” He’s always hated his name. 

“Deimos…” He trailed off, shocked. “You’re not a _freak._ ”

Shakily, Deimos inhaled and exhaled. Slowly, he took Gabriel’s hand and guided it to the bottom of his shirt. His hands were trembling as he pulled up his shirt, his smooth expanse of skin inch by inch revealing itself. Then, a shock of black was revealed and Deimos saw the look in Gabriel’s eyes change. Suddenly, Gabriel pushed his shirt up and revealed the black bralette he wore underneath. His nipples stung to the cold. Deimos couldn’t read his expression, and shakily, he led his other hand to his jeans, where he unbuttoned slowly to reveal matching lace underwear. 

_“Fuck,”_ Gabriel growled. 

Deimos didn’t know what to say. He let his eyes take every inch of him, every second making it harder and harder to breathe. 

Then his lips were on him and he was unbuttoning his shirt. With a gasp, Gabriel this time guided Deimos to his chest and immediately felt lace. Shocked, Deimos broke the kiss and saw a pale pink lace bralette stretched across his chest. Quickly, Deimos slid his hands to his pants and felt lace as well. For a moment, Deimos just looked at Gabriel with utter shock. 

“You look so hot,” Gabriel growled, biting his ear. _“God, you are so hot.”_

Deimos didn’t know what to do. Before he knew it, Gabriel had his lips and hands all over him, tasting and licking every inch of his skin while Deimos moaned in pleasure. He was supposed to be angry at him. He was supposed to be his enemy. But, Gabriel whispered into his ear time and time again, “you’re not abnormal, you’re beautiful,” and it made Deimos’ stomach flip and blood boil. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :^)


	8. City Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's one of those days

_To: Deimos_

_Do you want to come over today? I’m baking cookies- well Raven is_

_From: Deimos_

_Sorry busy_

Mira sighed and threw her phone onto her bed. Groaning, she walked out of her room and collapsed onto Sophie, who was watching Master Chef with her girlfriend Rika. Both of them patted her head, oddly calm about this situation. 

“What happened? Is Deimos coming over?” Raven called from the kitchen. 

“No, he’s busy,” Mira whined. 

“He’s avoiding you.”

“I know!” She wailed. “It’s been a week!”

“Wow, you guys are glued to the hip,” Sophie commented. 

“We were!” She grumbled. “Why would he be busy!? He doesn’t have a job!”

“She’s so cute when she’s mad,” Rika whispered. 

“She misses him dearly,” Sophie added. 

Mira whined and hugged Sophie’s waist. “I know, I’m gross.”

“I think it’s endearing.”

“Try to look on the bright side, you’ll get more cookies now,” Raven said. 

Mira sighed. _“I guess,”_ she said sarcastically. 

“Mira, do you like this boy?” Rika asked suddenly. 

She stared at her and thought hard about it. “…Yeah,” she groaned, finally defeated. “I like him so much it’s stupid.”

Sophie and Raven were silent. Then, she heard the vigorous stomping of feet and Raven appeared behind the couch. 

“Wait, _what?!”_ She shouted. 

“The beast finally admits it,” Sophie whispered. 

Mira stared at them, deadpan and serious. Suddenly, Sophie pulled out her wallet and handed Raven a five dollar bill. 

“Fuck,” Sophie muttered. Raven smiled in response and plucked it from her grasp. 

“Are you serious right now,” Mira whined. “You made a _bet?”_

“Absolutely,” Raven laughed. “Sophie and Dani were positive you were going to keep denying it until Christmas or something. I believed since you’ll be around each other throughout summer, you’d finally come to your senses.”

Mira rolled her eyes dramatically. “Did you make a bet on when we’d start dating?”

“Absolutely,” Sophie and Raven said in unison. 

Sighing, Mira sat up and gnawed on her lip. “Do…you think Deimos sees me that way?”

Raven made a face. “Dude, _yeah.”_

“But I dress like a boy and I’m the _furthest_ from sexy,” she scratched her head. She gestured to her ripped jeans and baggy shirt. “No one would want _this._ ”

“What’s wrong with dressing masculine?” Raven poked her hard. “You look adorable.”

Mira blushed. “But Deimos would like someone way more…” She gestured dramatically. “Not like me.”

“Mira, when has your sense of style and what you like ever impeded on your relationship status?” Sophie frowned. “You had a lot of boys pining for you. Deimos is definitely pining for you.”

She was blushing. “He’s just…” She groaned. “I just don’t want my hopes up.” 

“Mira, seriously, there are so many types of people in this world at least a hundred would love to have a girl like you in their life. Dressing on the masculine side and acting more masculine and liking masculine things is nothing to be ashamed of. It makes you and shapes you, and Deimos has definitely fallen in love with all those aspects about you, just like how you love his painted nails and bracelets,” Raven said sternly. 

This felt like déjà vu. It was like Mira’s had this conversation before, and she probably has. Maybe from when she was younger, maybe when Raven and her switched spots and it was Mira encouraging Deimos. She sighed and rubbed her face. 

“I guess so,” she muttered. Raven patted her on the back. 

“He’s a great guy, everyone approves,” she teased before wandering back into the kitchen. 

“Raven?” Mira whined out. 

“Yeah?”

“Do you seriously think I have a chance?”

“He looks at you like you’re the stars,” Raven said calmly. 

 

A shiver ran down his spine and Deimos groaned loudly. His back curved upwards, reaching for pink lips that kissed down his torso, and shuddered when a hot tongue flicked at his nipples. He saw stars, the pleasure bubbling inside of him increasing with every move Gabriel made. Every prod of his tongue, every smack of his lips, every warm touch of his fingers, every punishing roll of his hips. It made Deimos’ mouth gape wide open and eyes roll back, another gasp escaping his lips. Gabriel’s hands interlaced with his and were high above Deimos’ head, pinned to the bed with power Deimos hasn’t felt before. He took in the sight of Gabriel’s flushed expression above him, as well as the rippling muscles of his arms as they pinned Deimos in place. He was hairless everywhere, every time his soft skin brushed against Deimos another jolt of pleasure ran through him. When he hugged him naked, when his hips met his, when their chests pressed against each other. Every touch was punishing, leaving Deimos gasping for more. 

Teasingly, Gabriel leaned back and threw Deimos’ legs over his shoulder. His thighs burned in protest, but was easily replaced with the electric pleasure of Gabriel burying deep inside of him. The Greek male hiccupped a gasp and panted hard, his prostate sensitive to the slightest prod. Sex toys were very different compared to a real cock. Gabriel was warm and pulsating and _wet,_ and the body connected to it was gorgeous. Gabriel looked ethereal. He looked beautiful with his long hair down. He looked like a Greek god. Achilles maybe. Maybe Adonis. A man that flirted with femininity. 

“What are you thinking about, Deimos?” Gabriel muttered softly.

“You,” he replied back truthfully. He didn’t feel like he could lie to him, Gabriel and him were connected and both feeling excruciating pleasure. Gabriel smiled at him and pulled out agonizingly slowly, Deimos’ thighs twitching as he went. Then teasingly he rammed deep inside of him, Deimos jolting in surprise and moaning out loudly. 

“God, you’re so sexy,” Gabriel purred, rolling his hips playfully inside of him. Shivering, Deimos bit his lip to suppress another loud moan. One of his hands left Deimos’ and slid up his thigh to the sheer thigh highs he wore. He brought his leg to his mouth and licked and bit playfully at the thin cloth. The noises his lips made were erotic- the sight of Gabriel licking and sucking his thighs were erotic. 

_“Fuck,”_ Deimos whimpered when Gabriel resumed fucking him slowly. 

“Keep talking to me, babe,” Gabriel whined, a loose smile on his face. His pace sped up a little. “Does it feel good?”

Deimos gasped and shivered as Gabriel kissed his neck and bit at his ear. “Y-Yeah, I-I’m fucking going insane,” he groaned. The other male snickered and upped his pace even more. Deimos cursed under his breath and trembled to his thrusts, his mind melting to goo every time Gabriel fucked deeper and harder into him. The wet slapping noises of their bodies meeting was loud and poignant and it echoed in Deimos’ small little apartment. 

Suddenly, Gabriel finally released his grip on Deimos’ hands and grabbed his hips roughly. He adjusted into a more comfortable position that immediately made Deimos scream by accident. He was at the perfect angle to grind hard onto his prostate, the sensation toe-curling. Gabriel smiled as Deimos’ eyes rolled back in ecstasy, fucking harder and harder on that one spot. It drove Deimos insane. 

_“G-God, I’m gonna cum,”_ Deimos whimpered out. 

“Just with my cock?” Gabriel teased, pressing himself right onto his prostate. Deimos tensed up and curled his toes painfully. His hips shook involuntarily and it ignited a fire into Gabriel. Hotly, he dove for Deimos’ lips and spread his legs wide. With one hard slap, he shoved deep into him and grinded their hips together. Deimos couldn’t breathe, suffocated by Gabriel’s lips and his cock, pleasure taking over his senses. Gabriel tasted sweet on his lips, his tongue hot and teasing as it explored his mouth and found every little secret to make Deimos even weaker. 

Then, his lips were off him and he grabbed Deimos’ hips hard. With punishing blows, Gabriel pounded into him, Deimos caught off guard and shouting out a string of obscenities until Gabriel silenced them with his lips. He was going at a pace that overwhelmed Deimos’ senses and took hold of every thought. He fucked him harder and harder, his grip bruising and cock throbbing. Every single time it hit his little sweet spot, Deimos reached closer and closer to orgasm. 

_“G-Gabriel, f-fuck!”_ Deimos whined out. His cock was burning. His body throbbed. He couldn’t breathe. Then, the wave of pleasure took hold of him and he ejaculated, cum splattering onto both himself and Gabriel. The male continued his punishing session, inching close to orgasm and making Deimos’ even more oversensitive. Deimos bounced on his cock, desperately wanting Gabriel to come but also secretly in love with the oversensitive burning feeling. Soon after, Gabriel let out a moan that made Deimos melt and ejaculated. Gasping and sweating, Gabriel pulled out and tugged Deimos upwards into a warm embrace. His legs wrapped around his waist and he pulled him into a deep kiss, both males gasping and panting and shivering and throbbing with every little touch. Their oversensitive cocks rubbed against each other, Deimos instigating it more than Gabriel, until Deimos was the one pinning Gabriel to the bed. For a moment, they just stared at each other, gasping and gazing at the sight of a beautiful man in bed with him. Gabriel yanked him down and kissed him slowly, his other hand sliding to Deimos’ cock and teasing him softly. Deimos’ hips shook to his hot touch, his body jolting with oversensitivity. 

“One more time?” Gabriel purred. 

“I…I don’t know,” Deimos gasped. 

Gabriel smiled at him and suddenly got up slowly. Deimos obediently leaned back while Gabriel rolled over, got onto his knees and lifted his ass up in the air. Coyly, he wiggled his ass and stretched out his pink entrance. 

“Have about now?” Gabriel growled hungrily. 

Deimos swallowed thickly. His hands slid to Gabriel’s ass.

He devoured him whole. 

 

Mira knocked on Deimos’ metal door absentmindedly. She stared out into space, focusing on one scratch on his door that curled around the knob. It looked angry, as if some sort of monster had used its long nail to open the door. What if Deimos was a werewolf? 

She was in a weird mood. 

She did hear the screech of a chair and a curse from behind the door, but didn’t really register it. However, she looked up at the tenant when the angry scratch mark disappeared and a hand appeared in its place. That hand in particular was connected to a wrist that had several woven bracelets on it and a golden friendship bracelet. It grasped the doorframe and Mira was flashed with purple nails today. 

“Hey,” Deimos said, curt and gruff. 

Mira’s eyes slid up to his beautiful olive green eyes. “Hi.”

“It’s almost ten in the evening,” he stated, a slight downward curl on his lips. 

“Do you want to go on a walk?” She asked. 

He made a face. For a moment, it seemed foreign to her. They haven’t seen each other in ten days, she shouldn’t be overreacting like this. She was being needy, obsessive. She’s survived nineteen years without Deimos in her life. 

“Did you seriously spend a whole hour bussing up here to ask me that?” He questioned. 

Mira nodded slowly. 

“Is everything alright?” 

She nodded again. 

He stared at her hard and sighed. “Come in. Do you want hot chocolate while I get ready?”

“It’s getting warmer, I’m good,” she muttered. 

“Your loss,” he called back. Mira stopped beside the kitchen and looked at his small flat. It was fairly clean for the odd sweater or two on the ground. His bed wasn’t made and when Mira sat down, it was still warm from him. Deimos grabbed a grey sweater hanging off his chair and changed out of his sweatpants into jeans. He plucked two energy bars from the pantry and tossed one to her. Absent-mindedly, she munched on it while he grabbed his phone, keys and wallet. 

“Are you ok?” Deimos asked when they exited his apartment and into the cool nighttime air. There was a slight blue tinge to the sky as the sun desperately tried to stretch over the green mountains. It was a cloudless night. Mira stared down at the tall and steep hill they were on, gazing at the magnificent sight of the university campus lights twinkling at the bottom, and also further in the distance at the bottom of the valley where the city stretched out. Gold and silver lights glowed and lit eerie highways that stretched across the valley. 

“Beautiful,” Mira murmured, staring out. “A little universe.”

“Mira, are you high or drunk?” Deimos asked. 

She looked at him and shrugged. She sighed and rubbed her neck. “I’m just a little out of it today. I woke up at five in the afternoon and spent four hours debating if I wanted to get up.”

Slowly, they descended down the hill and into the sparkly city universe. 

“And your first instinct was to come here after you got out of bed?”

“Yeah.”

Deimos’ lips formed into a tight line. “Have you eaten?”

“No.”

“Are you ok?”

“Maybe.”

“Do you want to get dinner at the campus or something?”

She smiled. “That would be nice. How’s the campus? Empty? Spooky?”

“It feels the same. There are summer classes, so food places still have long lines.”

“Damn.”

“I know, it sucks.”

“There is a different atmosphere to them. The people who take classes don’t feel like students. This isn’t their life. This isn’t their home.”

“I know what you mean.”

Mira sighed and held out her hand. Deimos took it. 

“I’m having one of those days,” she muttered. 

“You wanna walk down to the gas station and get slurpies or something?”

“That would be nice,” she chuckled. Her grip on his hand tightened. “Thank you for being there for me.”

“No problem.”

“If you’re ever…feeling like shit, text me, call me, come to me,” she murmured. “You mean everything to me.”

Deimos walked a little closer to her. “Truthfully, I was having an off day as well.”

“How so?”

“I missed you.”

“I missed you too.”

“Weird what one person does to you,” he laughed sourly. “I see you everywhere and then suddenly school’s done and you’re not a daily routine.”

“Texting’s cool, but can never beat the real person.”

“Exactly.” 

They smiled at each other. As they walked, their bracelets brushed against each other. 

“Do you ever wonder what life would be life if you were born the opposite gender?” Deimos asked suddenly. 

“Sometimes.”

“I think about it a lot.” His voice was soft. Mira glanced over at him, the city lights twinkling behind him. The cool breeze pushed his ruffled locks out of his face. He had long eyelashes. “Would I have still fallen in love with my ex-girlfriends? Would I have dated my best guy friend? Would I be in Greece? Would I have met you? And if I did, would I have met you sooner? Later? Would I be happier?”

“Do you like being a boy?” Mira asked calmly. 

“I do. I don’t know, it’s weird.” He scratched his head. “I’m happy right now, maybe not at this second, but I’m happy overall. I like being a guy, yeah. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to wear dresses and makeup. I don’t think that’s because I want to inherently be a girl. Maybe I just want to know the effect it has on a woman. Some girls call their makeup their war paint. I wanna know how that feels to be…empowered. I wanna know the feeling of strutting in heels and dancing in dresses. There’s this distinctive emotion girls feel when they’re at their best. I don’t know if it’s the same as catching a football or scoring a goal or dressing up dapper or slicking their hair back with gel.”

“I know what you mean.” Mira smiled. “There’s this sort of satisfaction when I sit with my legs open. This dominance that I have over myself. Assertion, something like that. It’s exciting for me to tuck in my hair into my beanie and walk around in boy clothes and walk with my head held high and shoulders back. It’s weird, it’s like I want them to think I am a boy, even though I’m obviously a girl. I like my boobs, I like my body. But I like disguising it now and then to someone who is more confident, rougher and dominant.” 

“It’s good to know we’re both really weird,” Deimos chuckled. Mira smiled in response. 

Eventually, they made it to one of the cafeterias on campus where only one booth was open, and people crowded around it. It was the kitchen connected to the bar, which had hours that went pretty late into the night, and their food wasn’t that bad. It was still a little greasy, but on a whack night like this, it was invited. Mira and Deimos ordered nachos and burritos, opting out from the noisy cafeteria to the abandoned engineering building nearby. The building was really two buildings with a glass bridge that stretched three levels. The place had the comfiest seats and also an amazing 180 view of the glowing city below. The lights were dim and sparse, it was eleven o’clock now, but that didn’t stop Mira and Deimos from having a nice, relaxing meal. The crunching of nachos echoed throughout the whole glass building. 

Afterwards, they made their way down the stretching, long hill to the side of the highway where the next pit stop for salvation was probably half an hour away. However, the highway that was usually bustling and screeching with life in the afternoon was dead at night. Orange-tinted lights lit up their path as they walked down, the eerie silence of the dead highway deafening. For once, Mira could hear herself breathe and Deimos breathe and the little scuffling of their feet. When they got to solid ground, Mira grabbed Deimos’ hand and tugged him onto the abandoned highway, this sort of adrenaline surging through her as she ran across the four empty lanes. At any time that wasn’t this, she’d be dead. Cars go over a hundred here, huge bustling cargo trucks wheeze their way out, motorcycles scream down the highway. Yet, at midnight it’s magic and there’s no one and it feels like Deimos and Mira are the only ones alive. 

Their giggles dissipate into the night air, as well as their sudden screams of jubilation. At first, Deimos shouted because he wanted to let off steam and listen to it echo down the highway. He screamed obscenities and then incoherent noises. 

_“FUCK YOU DAD!”_ He’d shout. _“FUCK YOU ELIZABETH! FUCK EVERYONE WHO MADE ME FEEL LIKE SHIT!”_

Mira laughed at him as he devolved into stomping around and hollering out to the stars like an animal. Something primal came out of him and it ebbed off Mira. She let out a long scream that ripped her throat and left her voice raspy. She shouted obscenities as well before getting really specific. 

_“FUCK YOU LONELINESS!”_ She screamed. _“FUCK YOU FATHER! FUCK EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING THAT MADE ME FEEL LIKE SHIT!”_

They glanced at each other and laughed hard. They shouted together. That was the loudest Mira’s ever heard Deimos be. And she fell in love with it like everything else he does. They danced and jumped around lane to lane and hooted at the moon, eventually getting tired out. Deimos collapsed in the middle of the highway, his hands rubbing the tears out of his eyes and he giggled. Mira was a few steps away, breathless, and immediately she took out her phone to take a picture of him. Deimos, lying on the ground, laughing, in the middle of an orange-lit highway that seemed to stretch out forever. He noticed her taking pictures and pulled out his to also take petty shots of her. She covered her face in shame and he snickered at her. They ended up taking a million shots on the highway, some of them standing up, some of them lying down, some of them with both of them in the shot. Some were selfies, some were staged, some were unintentional. Mira had Deimos standing in the furthest lane and pull up the bottom of his shirt to cover his face. At first, she didn’t know he was wearing a bra, but he didn’t care and gladly flashed her. She laughed and took the shot. Deimos had Mira staring up at the stars while he laid on the ground to take a shot of her with the night sky. Mira joined him on the ground and took several photos of them. In one shot, Deimos kissed her cheek. Then, they sat in the middle of the highway reviewing the shots and choosing ones that would become their new lock wallpaper. 

Mira chose the shot of Deimos flipping her off while he sat cross-legged in the middle of the highway. It was perfectly symmetrical on both sides, the stretch of the highway hypnotizing and the orange glow eerie. Deimos chose the photo of Mira wearing his sweater, hood up and hands in the pockets. It was large on her, stretching to the middle of her thighs. She stood with her legs spread apart with a lane marker landing right in the middle of her stance. Her shadow stretched in front of her just like the long road that kept going in front and behind her. 

Then, they finally made their way back to the safety of the thin bike lane/sidewalk and in time as two cars broke the silence and screeched past them. 

“I’ve been thinking about colours,” Mira brought up as they passed by their millionth streetlight. Mira watched as their shadows rotated from the front to the back. “What if we assigned a colour to a day? And what if we had calendars dedicated to colours?” 

Deimos’ hand slid into hers and she clutched onto him tightly. 

“What if we coloured every day with a specific colour that represented the day,” she continued. “If you stepped back and looked…What would a week look like? Would it look like a gradient? What would a month look like? Would the colour change be sporadic or patterned? What would a year look like? Would months turn into one colour or would each day be so different that it looks like the boxes are multiplying?”

Deimos was silent. 

“What months would be darker? What years would be lighter? What weeks would be colourful? What weeks would be monochromatic? Analogous?” She spoke a little faster. “What would elementary school look like? Middle school? High school? What about last summer, or last November? You’d be able to see so many patterns. The mixed mess middle school was when you were finding yourself, that one month tinted in red when you finally got your first girlfriend or boyfriend, the grey months when you were realizing you were finally growing up, that one yellow-themed weekend adventuring with your friends…that one pitch black day that haunts you every month. If you met someone really special to you that made your day, would you in turn paint that day a colour that symbolized them? Would you be also assigning colours to people? What palette would they have, since everyone is so complex and layered they can’t just have one?”

“I’d colour you red,” Deimos replied softly. “If we’re talking about the night of the party. Eye-catching, blaring, striking, a little overwhelming. You’re the red on a stop sign.”

Mira smiled. “I’d say cobalt blue. Deep, dark, yet still electric and striking,” she murmured. “What about now? What colour is this day?”

“Orange like the streetlights,” he said softly. He gazed up at one. “Bittersweet. A little lonely, dark and eerie, yet at the same exciting and bright like tongues of a flame.”

“I’d agree,” she chuckled. “City stars.”

He nodded. “City stars.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: the colour convo mira and deimos had parallels a real convo i had with my friend at 4am. I was fuckin out of it and immediately wanted to remember it so it lives on with my sweet beans (i was up until 9am writing lol)  
> I even made it a real conceptual photography series for my Art Theory Final in university  
> I also turned their little convo into a [3-part comic on my Tapas lol](https://tapas.io/episode/710895)


	9. Pink Sweaters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deimos is falling very, very hard for Mira. So hard it's kind of killing him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to release another chapter in celebration of a sweet fan making fanwork of Stupidly Beautiful!  
> [Check out lilacsandlostlovers' beautiful work!!!!!!](https://glitternano.tumblr.com/post/162144886705/stupidly-beautiful-aka-the-gentle-femdom-love)  
> oh my god it's amazing im literally dead!!!!  
> 10/10 shook

_From: Gabriel_

_I want to see you when are you free babe?_

_To: Gabriel_

_I don’t know. I’m with Mira right now. Maybe tomorrow night._

_From: Gabriel_

_Don’t keep me waiting too long_

_God, I want you_

Thickly, Deimos swallowed. He clicked off his phone and focused on the little girl with the red beanie looking at the mens clothes in the largest female-dominated retail store in the mall. She was stuck with a dilemma buying either a long black knitted sweater or a dark blue hoodie that was two sizes too big. Surprisingly, the men that passed by, also looking at the same things, didn’t even bat an eye to her. It was surreal. 

“What do you think?” Mira asked suddenly, showing off the two tops. Deimos clicked from one to the other. His first reaction was to choose the black sweater. 

“Put it on,” he responded. 

She sighed. “I guess you’re right.”

Deimos smiled at her. She smiled back and wrapped an arm around his waist as they walked over to the changing rooms. Thankfully, it was decently empty for Deimos to steal a seat. Mira was a quick changer, and she twirled for him playfully. The long black sweater turned into a dress on her, and she wore leggings just for this occasion. She looked cute. She tried on the blue sweater and she looked cute. A different kind of style, but still incredibly cute. 

“I still think I like the black one,” he responded. 

“The black one’s nice,” she snickered. 

“It looks like it could fit me.”

“Hey, probably could,” she laughed. “Hey, instead of boyfriend sweaters, you’d get girlfriend sweaters.”

“Pft,” he chuckled. “Half of your wardrobe would probably fit me.”

“You’ll finally wear some colour!” She teased. Deimos rolled his eyes. They bickered and teased each other as they made their way up to the cash register and held hands exiting the store. For a moment, Deimos felt whole. He felt like this was _real._ He felt like this situation, _this date_ , was _real._ Mira was holding his hand, arm wrapped around his and smile brilliant like the sun. It made his stomach twist how disgustingly sweet this was. 

But then, he was yanked right back into reality as his phone vibrated in his pocket. Quickly, he checked his notifications. 

Gabriel had sent him a photo. And in the three seconds Deimos saw him in lace on his bed, he immediately deleted it. A wave of panic surged through him, and the photo of Mira as his background didn’t quell his anxiety. 

God, he had fucked up. 

He should have never caved into his desires for another warm body. He should have never longed so desperately to feel loved. To feel needed. To be devoured. It just brought him back to his stupid sixteen year old self with his best friend and the long week they had together. Now he was nineteen, almost twenty, being fucked and ravished by a man he barely knew. A man that loved to make love in lace and velvet like him, a man that danced between the line of femininity and masculinity. Gabriel smelled, looked and tasted so good. 

Yet he loved the girl beside him who held his hand tightly any second she could. Who stuck close to him and showered him in cuddles, hugs and kisses, and made him feel whole. She was the only person he’s showed his demons to, and she had some sort of magic to make them small and weak. He gave her strength and confidence he hasn’t felt in years. Today, Deimos painted his nails pastel blue. He’s taken good care of the bracelets Mira has made for him and the bracelets they bought together. He feels like he could do anything with her. And he has. 

He’s seen a supermoon in a snowy meadow. He’s ripped down nighttime highways with the music blasting. He’s snuggled in warm blankets. He’s gone to a slumber party. He’s danced and screamed down an abandoned highway. 

They’ve chatted about their gender and sexuality. They’ve opened up about their relationships. They’ve raved about movies. They’ve discussed the existence of aliens. They’ve wondered about the secrets forests hide. They’ve talked about colours. 

Mira’s everything Deimos could ever ask for. Even sexually. She takes charge, she devours him whole. She leaves him hot and jittery, desperately begging for more. It’s incredible what she can do to him. One moment she’s got stars in her eyes excitedly talking about the secrets of the universe, and another her stare is half-lidded, hot and hungry, her lips pressed against his chest and tongue licking over his lingerie. One moment she’s in a dress, swirling and dancing and laughing to a song in his truck, and another she’s in converse and a beanie, hands in her pockets, teasing him in a raspy, stupidly sexy voice. She’s giggling, she’s smirking. She’s grinning, she’s lip-biting. Deimos loves every side of Mira and he’d set the world on fire to just have one of them. 

Sometimes, when Deimos is having a pitch black day, he wonders if it would be easier if he was a girl. Mira prefers girls, she’s suave with them, she loves them. Everywhere she looks, her eyes are on a beautiful girl. Her eyes twinkle. 

Two nights ago, Gabriel even told him how much Mira loved girls. It was dark, the sheets were warm over them, and their bodies were covered in sweat. They were spooning, Gabriel’s fingers deep inside of Deimos, going in lazy circles that left his toes tingling. Gabriel whispered into his ear about how much Mira loved to finger him. She loved treating him like a woman in bed. He fucked him slowly describing his first time with her, he whispered about how devilish she could be in bed. Deimos came to the thought of her, Gabriel fucking him senseless afterwards to only embed the thought deeper and deeper into him. 

How would Mira react if Deimos told her that he was sleeping with Gabriel? How would she react if he told her Gabriel revealed what she was like in bed? Her kinks? Her fantasies? 

Deimos sighed and shook that out of his head. He wanted to forget about all of that. He wanted to forget that Gabriel and everyone else existed. This moment was his, this sweet little moment holding hands with this sweet little girl. That’s what he needed to focus on. 

“Is everything alright?” Mira asked suddenly. Deimos clicked out of whatever funk he was in and glanced down at her. They had stopped in front of skate shop, the same shop Mira buys all her ridiculous bomber jackets. 

Deimos swallowed thickly and nodded. “Y-Yeah,” he said, though he knew he was just making it worse.

Mira frowned at him. 

He sighed. “I’m seriously ok, I just had a moment…”

She squeezed their hands. 

“I’m ok,” he laughed. He didn’t know if he truly was. Just one thought sometimes takes over him. One cue and his whole world is falling apart. 

“Deimos,” she chirped. “I love you.” Then, ever so lightly, she kissed his hand. (Like fucking Prince Charming.)

And then this stupid idiot says shit like this that leaves him feeling better. 

Calmly, they entered the store. 

“Hey,” he said quietly. 

“Hm?”

“Is it weird to say I kind of want to treat myself?”

“It’s totally not weird to say that.”

“Do you…do you think you could stay with me while I go in the women’s section?”

Mira smiled brightly at him. “Of course!”

He knew his hand was getting progressively sweatier the longer they searched around the women’s section. He’s never done this before. This skate shop, as described by Mira, was pretty gender neutral, and the staff were chill and nice. As they searched around, Deimos once again realised no one took notice in them even if he was the one truly looking around. It felt too good to be true. 

Eventually, Deimos found the sweater he’d seen a million times before. It was something extremely out of his comfort zone, but he wanted it so badly. 

It was a pastel pink hoodie. 

And of course, it was too good to be true. 

“Fuck, there’s only a large.” Mira bit her lip. “It’s so cute though.”

Deimos felt like an idiot. 

“Do you need any help?” A new voice chirped. Quickly, Deimos whipped around and saw the jolly worker peering down at the pink hoodie he was wearing. He had piercings and stretched ears, ripped jeans and a cameo jacket. His eyes met his and Deimos wanted to burn himself alive. His face boiled. 

“U-Um.” God, he’s never felt so ashamed. He couldn’t do this. 

“Oh, are you looking for a larger size in that?” The worker smiled happily. “We’re out of extra larges in that, but I’m pretty sure in the men’s section we’ve got many pink hoodies that’ll fit better on you.”

Mira noticed how freaked out Deimos was. She smiled and rubbed his back. 

“U-Um, in this exact colour?” He stuttered nervously. 

“Yeah, of course! Pastel pink is great, dude,” he nodded happily. “I’ll take that off your hands and show you some alternate options. What is your opinion on flamingos?”

“Pft,” Mira snickered. For a moment, Deimos stood still in his spot as the worker busily strutted away. 

Somehow, Deimos ended up being dragged through the store left and right, the worker thoroughly giving him many options of sweaters and even pointing out the prices so he could get the best deal. They narrowed down his search to three sweaters: a plain one, one with a flamingo and one with donuts. 

“I vote the flamingo,” Mira whispered to him. 

“I love the flamingo as well,” the worker laughed. 

Deimos smiled. “I guess I’ll go with the little flamingo.”

“Perfect choice,” he raved, shooting finger guns at him. Somehow, with no incident, Deimos paid for the pastel pink sweater and walked out with Mira with it in his hands. No one laughed at him, no one gave him stink eye, and no one shamed him. Even the worker seemed genuinely ecstatic for him. 

“Is this real,” Deimos muttered after they left. Mira had the brightest smile. 

“Yep,” she giggled. 

“Oh my god,” he laughed and shook his head. “This is insane.”

Mira wrapped her arm around him and giggled some more. “This is all happening!” 

“M-Mira,” he said, a new energy in him. “Can we go to a jewelry store?”

“Sure!” She said happily. 

Deimos was amazed at how daring he felt now. It was like he had stared death in the face and won. He could do anything, he could do this. 

He walked straight into a pink and purple jewelry store and went for the choker necklaces. Mira followed, smiling the whole way and helped him pick out five necklaces he’s seen online before. He's always wanted to buy them, but never had the nerve to. But now, he feels like he can do anything. He bought a silk pink one with a star pendant, a black lace one, the classic 90s plastic one, a thin red ribbon one, and white one with silver chains and a key pendant. Unblinking, he paid for all five of them and even said, “have a nice day” to the worker. Then, not even out of the store yet, he pulled the classic 90s one out of the bag and slipped it on. 

“Ooh, it suits you,” Mira cheered. 

“Y-You think so?” He blushed. 

“I know so.” She hugged his arm. “I’m proud of you, dude.”

“Thanks,” he muttered. 

“Do you feel a bit better?”

“I feel a lot better.”

 

“Dude, is that Deimos?” Raven asked suddenly. Mira looked up from her monitor, pulled down her headphones and swirled around in her seat. 

“What?” She asked quickly. 

Raven pointed at the photos Mira was currently reviewing and selecting for the “Muse” art show. The photo stretched across her laptop screen was a close-up profile shot of Deimos in front of a white wall. Mira had him stare up at the ceiling to give a nice view of his neck as he wore a black and white silk choker with silver chains, and had him praying with his hands up in shot to get a good look of his matte black nails. He wore his adorable pink sweater that contrasted with the pitch black lipstick he wore as well as the pitch black circle Mira painted on the wall to look like he had a flattened halo. 

“He looks amazing,” Raven commented, leaning in closer. “Look at those lips.”

Incredibly, Mira had gotten him to soften his expression. His lips were slightly parted and his olive green eyes were distant. She had also gotten Renee to help with his makeup so he looked like he was glowing. 

“Beautiful, isn’t he?” Mira said proudly. 

“Chokers and dark lipstick suit him wonderfully.”

“Hell yeah it does.”

“So I see he’s becoming comfortable with this new part of him, huh?”

Mira nodded happily. “He always liked cute, frilly and pink things and he’s finally buying stuff he likes.”

“I’m happy for him,” Raven laughed. “Damn he looks ethereal.”

“That’s what I keep saying!”

 

 

Deimos scrolled through Instagram slowly. He wasn’t really paying attention to any of the posts that came by until he noticed Mira’s. A smile spread across his face. It was a new work in progress shot of a painting that looked very much like him. The palette was monochromatic with pinks, reds and whites dancing across. The caption read, _“Still slaving away at this nerd’s face.”_

Naturally, Deimos tapped her icon and scrolled through her profile. She had updated more frequently now, probably to get people hyped for her “Muse” art show, and there were many behind the scenes shots of her paintings in progress or of Deimos himself. In the beginning, he hated being in so many of her posts, but now it was just expected. There was a shot of Mira and Deimos in front of a mirror with his chin resting on the top of her head. That was after they had finished taking photos of him with his “new look.” He still hadn’t taken off the black lipstick yet and Mira appropriately captioned the photo, _“He’s been making out with my inks.”_

Another post was one that Deimos actually captured of Mira dancing to Beyoncé shamelessly with him smiling at the bottom. He uploaded it before Mira even knew. Then there were cute scenery shots of the city when they went hiking back in the spring, and the photo of them lying in the middle of the abandoned highway at midnight. She chose the one where Deimos kissed her, and rightfully so. There was a shot of him in an empty lecture hall, a shot of him staring up at a sign, a shot of him in his cute pink sweater for the first time, a shot of their nails after they painted it. There was a video from her birthday a while back, where everyone for the whole day would just kiss Mira unexpectedly and get it on camera. Annie kissed her cheek when she was driving, Raven kissed her forehead after Mira got coffee, Sophie brought in flowers when she was in class and kissed her nose, Dani got lunch and kissed the top of her head, Dede kissed her hand in sculpture class, Frank and Simon kissed both of her cheeks, and Renee straight up kissed her when she came home. However, Deimos beat all of them, with Dede’s pestering, and kissed her throughout the whole day. When they were in class he’d lean over and kiss her temple, when they were having lunch he’d kiss her fingers, when they were on break cuddling on the couch he’d kiss her cheek, and when they were parting ways he’d kiss the top of her head. 

When it was Deimos’ birthday, he got the nerve to post a photo of Mira kissing his cheek while this dork has posts upon posts of them making out. 

There’s so many photos it’s overwhelming. She just came into his life like a whirlwind and settled down immediately. Looking at these photos felt surreal. The kissing, the hugging, the cuddling. To a stranger, they probably looked like a couple. 

What a fuckin’ fantasy. 

 

“What are you doing?”

“Taking a break.”

“Your room is a mess.”

“Thank you.”

“When’s the last time you ate?”

“Seventeen hours ago.”

“When’s the last time you took a break?”

“Seventeen hours ago.”

“Jesus Christ, Mira,” Deimos muttered as he tip toed his way through her hot garbage dump of a room. Clothes, papers, wads of tissue and towels were strewn across the floor. Large canvases and papers were either balanced on eagles, placed strategically on the floor and on her bed, or pinned on the walls. Painting after painting, photo after photo, drawing after drawing of Deimos covered her room. Black and white sketches, full colour photos, psychedelic paintings, colourful prints, they covered every inch. Deimos, Deimos, Deimos, Deimos, he looked at her from every angle. Suddenly, his face came into her line of sight and he peered down at her blankly. After trying to paint, draw and carve him as beautifully as possible, the real deal still can’t compare. She sighed and lifted up her arms, and he calmly grabbed her to yank her up. 

“You look like you’re going to collapse,” he commented as he helped her up. 

“I might if you let go of me.”

“Is Raven’s room free?”

“Yeah.”

“Go sleep in it. I’ll make dinner.”

“But what about the charcoal sketch today?”

“Dude, go the fuck to sleep, worry about that tomorrow.”

“But the exhibit is in two weeks.”

“And you’ll finish it on time. Look at all the work you have of me.”

“I still don’t…” She trailed off. “These pieces are studies on you, I don’t know, they don’t feel right.”

Deimos sighed and settled her down on the couch. Kneeling in front of her, he held her hands. “What’s your vision?”

She paused and laughed. “Dude, I’m an artist, I suck at explaining my _vision._ ”

“And I’m your muse and I want to help you,” he replied bluntly. 

She frowned and squeezed his hands nervously. “How do you feel about me portraying you more…feminine-like? Sensual?”

He stared at her. “Um,” his cheeks started to redden. “Can you explain it a little bit further?” 

She bit her lip. “You’re really pretty.”

He made a face. 

“You’re super pretty and beautiful, and it’s a shame other people can’t see it because you’re the best thing that’s happened to me,” she blurted out. “I’m being absolutely serious, dude.”

His face was bright red now and Mira could help but crack a smile. She hasn’t slept in a while and was a little tipsy right now, so she ended up giggling. 

“Mira, don’t laugh,” he muttered. He buried his face into his hands and groaned. “God, why are you so cute?!”

“You’re the cute one,” she laughed, poking him lightly. 

“Me? I’m broody and nippy.” He rolled his eyes. 

“That’s now more of a reason why I want to capture the beautiful side to you soyou can see!” She exclaimed. “Not that you aren’t beautiful 24/7 because you are.” 

He sighed and covered his blushing face. “Ok, whatever,” he groaned. “What’s the plan?”

Mira fiddled with her fingers now that Deimos had let them go. “Pastel palette. Maybe some blacks to give contrast. More colours, maybe flowers, lots of pink,” she said. “I need less studies on your face, since I’ve got a billion, and more on your body, if that’s alright.”

He looked at her and nodded slowly to her demands. 

“How long do you think you can hold a pose?” She asked softly. 

“Maybe half an hour? With little breaks in between. I could probably go longer to four hours if we keep breaks timed and long after half an hour.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“Are you willing to model semi-nude?”

“What do you mean by semi-nude?”

“You can wear your underwear.”

“Well, yeah, sure,” he said bluntly. “You’ve seen me walk around in my boxers a million of times.”

Well, yeah, but that doesn’t mean Mira doesn’t feel like throwing herself into a pit of fire afterwards. “Ok, thank you,” she sighed. 

He smiled at her. “You can do this.”

“Thanks,” she smiled softly. 

 

Deimos peeked into Raven’s room to see Mira quietly snoozing away, her arms wrapped around a pillow and body curled up into a ball. Finally, she looked peaceful. Nowadays, she was either stressed out or tired or both. She’s so cute and he’s embarrassed how many times he’s woken up when she sleeps over and just stared at her stupidly cute snoozing face. 

Closing the door quietly, he wandered through the halls to the kitchen to look what the girls had. Unsurprisingly, there was a huge stash of mac and cheese, instant noodles and frozen pizza, however, instead of making Mira eat that chemical shit, he opted out for making lasagna since that was a recipe he knew already and they had the ingredients. When he was cooking the pasta, Annie and Raven came home with a _special guest._

“Holy shit, you look so domestic,” Gabriel commented with a teasing smile. 

“God, why are you here?” Deimos groaned, glaring at him. Gabriel bit his lip and before Raven and Annie could catch them, stole a kiss off his lips. It made Deimos’ heart flutter and he hated it. 

“Someone’s cooking and I hope it’s not Mira,” Raven called from the bottom of the stairs. 

“It’s Deimos,” Gabriel called back. 

“Where’s Mira?” Annie asked as she entered the kitchen bewildered. “She’s been up for two days straight trying to get work done.”

“She’s sleeping,” Deimos replied bluntly. Annie popped up beside him to see what he was cooking.”

“Wow, you actually got her to sleep,” Raven shook her head in disbelief. “Even I can’t do that.”

“I’m her best friend,” Deimos said sarcastically, shaking his golden friendship bracelet at her. 

Raven stuck out her tongue playfully. She wandered over and patted him on the back. “Nice sweater.”

He was wearing the pastel pink sweater. 

“Thanks.” He smiled softly. 

“What are you making?”

“Lasagna.”

“Ooh, classic,” Raven smiled. “You want some help?”

“Sure.” He shrugged. 

“I can help too,” Annie sang. 

Deimos smiled as he cooked. Raven helped cook the sauce and beef, and Annie cleaned the dishes. Gabriel cleaned around the house and wandered into Mira’s room to see the shitstorm. 

“Probably don’t wanna touch any of that or she’ll go insane,” Raven commented as Gabriel searched around. Deimos and Annie were assembling the final masterpiece while Raven and Gabriel bickered in Mira’s room. 

“I might just touch stuff out of spite.”

“Do you seriously want Mira to punch you in the face?”

“What if I’m into punishment?”

“Dude, she’ll knock you the fuck out. Do you even remember grade twelve?”

He laughed at her. 

After the huge ass lasagna was in the oven, Annie and Raven recuperated on the couch and watched _Luke Cage_ while Deimos joined Gabriel in Mira’s room. He closed the door on his way in instinctively, and immediately was welcomed by hungry lips and rough hands. Hotly, Gabriel shoved him against the door and kissed him, grinding their hips together painfully. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Deimos gasped. Immediately, Gabriel stopped and looked at him, face flushed and confused. “C-Can we just talk?”

“Is it because we’re in Mira’s room?”

Deimos blushed. “That might be a contributing factor,” he muttered. “And that Annie and Raven are like five meters away.”

Gabriel released him and stepped back, licking his lips. “I guess you’re right.”

Deimos stared at him nervously. “Is this…is this going to be a regular thing?”

He smirked. “Do you want it to be a regular thing?”

Deimos frowned. “I…I don’t know.”

“How do you feel about me?”

_“I don’t know,”_ he hissed. 

He liked Gabriel. But not the same way he loved Mira. He barely knew him. He was hot, stupidly hot, and sex with him was mind-blowing, but…

“If you want to get to know me, I’m always here,” he said calmly. 

Deimos stared at his feet. “What about you? How to you feel about me?”

“You’re ridiculously hot,” he said in a heartbeat. 

Slowly, Deimos slid his eyes up to meet his gaze. “Is that it?”

“I don’t know anything about you.”

“Do you want to?”

“That’s your decision.”

“Why?” He asked, frowning. 

“Because you’re in love with Mira, aren’t you?” Gabriel said bluntly. 

Deimos paused and sighed, sliding down the door. “This is so fucked.”

“What is?”

“This!” He exclaimed. “The fact that…even though I fucking love Mira so much it hurts I slept with you!”

“Do you regret it?”

“I-!” He paused and sighed. “I don’t fucking know…” He gnawed on his lip. “I don’t know, I felt lonely and you were there…You…don’t deserve me.”

“I probably don’t, but I’m here,” he said calmly, walking over and kneeling down at him. Gabriel smirked at him. “I’m not an idiot, I know how much you love Mira. But I’m also your friend too. Your really weird friend that instead of giving you hugs and cuddles when you’re lonely, will totally fuck you into the mattress.”

“What the fuck,” he chuckled. 

Gabriel patted his leg. “If you don’t want this relationship, I won’t force it on you. I can also personally tell Mira about us if you want.”

“No, we should probably tell her together,” Deimos shook his head. He sighed and slid his hand to Gabriel’s cheek. “I don’t know how to be around you.”

“Take your time to understand.”

“You deserve better than me.”

“I probably do,” he shrugged. “But also I’m polyamorous.”

Deimos cracked a smile. “This is weird to ask, but even if we end up cutting this, can we still be friends?”

Gabriel laughed. “We did take a weird detour to get here, but of course, dude.” He patted him on the shoulder. “I’m the only one who knows your little secret.” He winked. 

Deimos paused and blushed. He bit his lip. 

“Wait, am I not?” Gabriel gasped. 

“Um…”

Gabriel smiled. “Is it Mira?”

He was absolutely still. 

_“Dude is it Mira?!”_

Deimos laughed nervously. While they waited for the lasagna to cook, he told him everything. 

It was weird to have a guy friend. 

Especially a guy friend with the same interests as him.

But, from Gabriel’s brilliant smile and boisterous laugh, it wasn’t so bad. 

 

Mira yawned and wandered out of Raven’s bedroom in a haze. She heard voices talking, but it sounded foreign to her half-asleep mind. Her eyes were still heavy, mind laced with slumber and dreams, and her movements were groggy. She knew she was walking into the kitchen by the smell and golden light, and reached out for the nearest voice that greeted her. Calmly, she hugged a tall torso, and Gabriel’s laughter reverberated her skull. 

“Someone’s a little tired,” he joked. 

“Wow, she didn’t reach out for Deimos, I’m genuinely shocked.”

“Her true feelings come out.”

“Dude, you’ve seen her room, she definitely loves Deimos.”

Gabriel’s arms wrapped around her head. “Then what is this little monster doing then, huh?”

Mira groaned. “You’re squeezing me too tight.”

“Good morning,” he purred. 

“How long was I asleep?” 

“Four hours,” Deimos responded. Mira was actually surprised how close his voice was. Drowsily, she looked up and blinked, rubbing the crap out of her eyes to look around. Deimos was leaning on the counter beside Gabriel, smiling at her amused. Raven and Annie were sitting at the dinner table eating lasagna, laughing at her. 

“Did you make dinner?” She asked, still hugging Gabriel. 

“Yeah,” Deimos said. 

“Did you know that I liked lasagna a lot?”

“Yep.”

“I love you,” she whined and pulled him close. Gabriel chuckled and let Deimos into the hug, all three of them snickering. 

 

Deimos found himself lying on Mira’s floor beside her, staring up at her ceiling covered in glowing stars, listening to Raleigh Ritchie, an indie artist that Mira intensely liked on YouTube. His vocals were soft and lyrics poignant with the orchestra and techno soundtrack dissipating into the warm summer air. Mira hummed softly to the music, her eyes closed and a faint smile on her face, her chest slowly rising up and down. Deimos didn’t know how long he stared at her for, but eventually instead of looking at the stars, he rolled onto his side and hugged her. Naturally, they slid into place, Deimos burying his face into the crook of her shoulder while Mira tapped gently on his hips to the music. 

“I think we’re taking this break thing a little too far,” she chuckled. 

“I’ll take off my clothes in a second,” he responded, but only squeezing her tighter. Mira giggled and kissed the top of his head. 

“This is nice.”

“It is.”

“We should go camping sometime. With the others.”

“Or we could just stay inside and watch movies.”

“We do that every day.”

“Exactly.”

“I vote camping.”

Deimos smiled and finally let go of her. He sat up and looked down at her, Mira smiling back at him. 

“You’re dreamy,” she said softly. 

“Shut up and get up,” he laughed. His stomach was in knots. God, this stupid asshole knew how to make him go insane. Sighing, Mira got up and turned on the lights. Calmly, Deimos walked over to the little spot in the room where there was yoga mats and padding for him and slipped off his shirt and pants again. Mira dragged her easel back into place and grabbed her sketchbook. After she flipped through the various pages, she conducted him on how to pose himself, then the moment he got back into place, Mira fell right back into her little zone. Her expression hardened and eyes widened to take in every detail in Deimos’ figure. It made him shiver involuntarily as her charcoal stick scratched across the paper. She was livid. 

Deimos felt cold wearing nothing but his underwear, and he felt his nipples tingle from the sudden loss of heat. He tried to stop his anxious heart from beating so fast to no avail as Mira continued to sketch him busily. 

“I’m almost done this pose,” she said calmly. “Just a few more minutes and you can sit in a chair or lie in my bed.”

Her monotone, deep and masculine voice was always a surprise to hear. Deimos hummed in response and tried not to stare at her too longingly. After doing this several times throughout the three days he’s camped at her house for, Mira had settled into a rhythm. Deimos wished he did too, but her intense stare was enough to make his knees weak. 

Modeling for her was a struggle. He loved this girl, and having her eyes on every inch of his skin was electrifying. She was drawing every inch of him, shading his skin, modeling his curves. She’d rub her thumb to erase a line, slide her pinky down to shade his thigh, and blow gently on his chest to get rid of excess charcoal. Deimos wondered what it would be like to have those hands study his skin, worship his body once again. Gabriel has been there to quell this primal thirst, but now that he’s stepped back to give Deimos a chance to recollect his thoughts, he’s just even more confused than ever and fucking livid for another person’s body heat. 

He remembered when Mira licked his nipples. He remember how she smelled and how hot her tongue was. He remembered how soft her fingers were and how punishing they were when they ghosted over his swollen buttons. He remembered how electrifying her hands were as she felt his ass, and how fucking daring she was when she rubbed his little entrance in circles. He’d let her take him, ravish him, fuck him in a heartbeat. God, he wanted her so badly it made his head spin. 

“Ok, done,” she said, instantly ripping him out of his heated fantasy. She smiled at him happily. “Do you want to take a break or move on to the next pose?”

“Let’s just get this over with,” he muttered, stretching his stiff muscles. Mira nodded and looked around. She bit her lip, her mind going a million miles per hour while Deimos watched her quietly. She moved her easel to her bed and quickly threw her extra pillows and blankets off it. Smoothing out her comforter, she glanced at Deimos and motioned him over. Hesitantly, he waited at the edge of the bed before sitting down. 

“What am I doing?” He asked calmly. 

“Lie on your stomach.”

He laid on his stomach. 

“Rest your head on your arm.”

He rested his head on his arm. 

“Other arm.”

The other arm. 

“And look at me.”

He looked at her. 

Her expression was intense. 

Suddenly, she leaned over and her hands slipped to his hips. His whole body burned as she pushed them forward and to the side. Her fingertips were hot. Her touch was gentle. Deimos wanted her so much he kinda wanted to die. 

“Ok, better, is that comfortable?” She asked softly. 

“Y-Yeah.”

She smirked at him. God, she was going to kill him. “Stay still.”

And he did. 

But every aching moment he wanted to sit in her lap and make out with her. It was getting ridiculous how much he wanted her. What the fuck is wrong with him. He’s never felt this needy before. This weak. This desperate. 

He tried to relax against Mira’s mattress but was only filled with the scent of her. She smelled sweet like candy and vanilla, creamy and fruity. Every time he breathed, he smelled of her and it drove him insane. 

His nipples hardened against her soft blanket, sensitive to the slightest touch. He kept remembering and fantasizing about Mira. How her lips probably tasted, how hot her fingers were against him, and how captivating her gaze above him would be. He knew he was getting hard thinking of her. He wanted to quell these thoughts, but a tiny part in him wanted to see what would happen. Would she punish him? Would she shame him? If so, verbally or physically? What would she say? How hard would she spank him? 

Deimos was dizzy at the thought. 

“Nice expression,” Mira murmured. “Keep that up.”

Deimos let out a whine. She didn’t seem fazed and that only made him go insane. She had no idea he was getting turned on to her scent and stare. She didn’t know that “ _nice expression”_ was the result of him thinking about her spanking him. He’d lie in her lap, his ass in the air, and she’d spank him roughly for being a naughty boy. She’d punish him with her fingers and bite his shoulders when he whined out too loudly. 

Mira, Mira, Mira. 

He closed his eyes. 

“Tired?” She asked. 

Even with his eyes closed, he could feel the weight of Mira’s stare on him. 

“A little.”

“Do you need a break?”

“No, not yet.”

“Tell me ok?”

“I will.”

“Mira?”

“Yeah.”

“Am I really that pretty to you?” Deimos opened his eyes. Mira stared at him, a smile on her face. 

“Yeah, you are,” she murmured. “Every inch of you.”

Deimos bit his lip. 

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he grumbled. 

“I’ll take that as a compliment?”

“You’re a pain in the ass.”

She snickered and continued sketching. 

Deimos closed his eyes and tried to quell all these mixed thoughts and feelings he felt for her. He just wanted to kiss her and have her kiss him back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're nearing the 10th chapter! only a few more chapters to go!  
> thanks for all the kudos guys!


	10. Bowling Alley Highways

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything happens all at once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

Mira stared at Gabriel blankly. He laid beside her, fiddling with his phone absentmindedly. She could hear Raven and Sophie bicker in the kitchen, Annie and her boyfriend laugh in her bedroom. She stared at his profile, at his long eyelashes and red lips. Then his eyes clicked to her. 

“What do you want from me, dude?” He said calmly. “You’ve been staring at me for the past five minutes.”

“Are you still single?” 

He paused, eyes widening in surprise. Then the usual nasty smirk stretched across his face. “Mira, are you asking me out?” 

She shoved him lightly. “I’m not, you dork,” she laughed. “I was just thinking…and the whole time I was in high school you never really stuck to anyone.”

“Well, yeah, because you were there,” he teased. “I didn’t want anyone else but you.”

“I’m being serious here, dude,” she complained. She shifted to the side so she was fully facing him. “Have you had a serious relationship after me?”

He shrugged. “Not really.”

“Do you want to?” 

“Not really,” he laughed. “Our relationship wasn’t that serious to begin with.”

Mira glared at him and peeked around to see if anyone was intently listening. No one was. “So when you confessed to me a month or two ago you really wanted to just sleep with me.”

He smiled _big._

“You’re such a dick,” she poked him hard. 

“Kissing you wasn’t that bad,” he admitted. 

She sighed. “That answers a lot of questions.”

“What does?”

“Your lack of romantic attraction.”

“For what?”

“Everything you do.” She poked him again. 

“Are you saying I’m aromantic?”

“I am, have you ever thought of that?” She replied. 

For a moment, his teasing smile faltered. “No, actually,” he hummed. “Is that weird?”

“No!” She exclaimed. “No, it’s totally ok.”

He smiled at her. “I probably don’t need any romantic love because I’ve got wonderful friends like you!” He sneered, jumping on her and pulling her into a tight hug. Mira yelped in surprise as he wrapped his whole body around her. She was squished between a tall pretty boy and her old couch, little kisses planted all over her face. 

“Are you guys having fun over there?” Raven commented, Sophie and her peering over at the mating display. Mira shook her head vigorously while Gabriel gasped dramatically. 

“They’ve spotted us,” he whispered comically. 

Mira gave him stink eye and he giggled. Swiftly, he grabbed her cheeks and kissed her hard on the lips. Then, he tumbled off the couch before she could swipe at him angrily. Raven stepped out of the way while Mira soared off the couch to chase after the serial kisser. They made it to the kitchen before Gabriel swirled around and hoisted Mira up to spin her around. She laughed and dramatically flung her arms out like she was a superhero and Gabriel sat her on the counter to give her another sudden peck on the lips. 

“You dork!” She yelped. Gabriel ran away and swung Raven into his arms, stealing a kiss from her as well and jumped to Sophie next. The shouts and screams were enough to have Annie and Daniel peek out into the living room. Gabriel left no survivors and kissed them as well. Daniel, who had met Gabriel twice, was left to die in Annie’s arms in shock. Annie laughed and wheezed in amusement. 

And if the shitstorm that was Gabriel and his kissing spree wasn’t crazy enough, Deimos finally arrived. Mira stumbled for the door but unfortunately Gabriel already had him in his grasp. Deimos was backed into the corner, Gabriel’s face smashed up against his, hands laced together and pinned to the wall. Deimos let out the softest whimper when their lips parted, their kiss a little _deeper_ than previous ones. Deimos stared at him with utter shock, his face completely red. 

“Wow, ok,” Mira commented. Deimos finally noticed her creeping in the corner and immediately shoved Gabriel off hard. He scrubbed his lips while Gabriel tumbled right into Mira. She hugged him from behind and stared at Deimos blankly. 

“You guys were feeling that,” Raven added, hugging Mira and squishing her between two tall idiots. 

Gabriel snickered and Deimos blushed even harder. 

“Deimos, Gabriel is no good, don’t go for him,” Mira said, pouting a little. 

“N-No, u-uh,” he stuttered, still standing in the corner. “Wasn’t planning to.”

“Damn.” Gabriel bit his lip. 

Mira glared up at him. “Deimos is mine, paws off.”

“Coming from the kid who’s hugging Gabriel,” Raven commented. 

“I’m squished between two giants.”

Raven let go of her. Mira sneered and squeezed under Gabriel’s left armpit to hug Deimos. He looked shocked as she jumped into a crushing hug, laughing at his bewilderment. Annie and Sophie popped up saying that Daniel finally left this world and they couldn’t go bowling anymore. Gabriel howled in laughter, wandering back into the kitchen to annoy him. The house was alive with noise and colour again, Deimos walking into a hot mess of it. 

“What the hell is happening,” he muttered, Mira still hanging off his neck. 

“Gabriel’s on a hunt to kiss everyone,” she explained. 

“Did he kiss you?” Deimos asked quickly. 

She smirked. “Yeah.” 

He frowned. Hotly, he grabbed the collar of her shirt and pulled her close. Their lips met. Then he was gone, walking deeper into the house. 

Mira stood in his spot, jaw dropped. 

She wasn’t expecting _that._

 

Deimos could hear the crashing of bowling pins outside. He sat on the ratty old cushion in the men’s washroom, staring at the floor. Men came and went, glancing at him weirdly as they saw a young man just sitting on this stupid chair staring at the tiled floors as if they were the most riveting thing he’s seen all year. 

He fucked up. 

He didn’t mean to kiss Mira. 

Well, of course he wants to kiss her every aching moment of the day, but maybe not this…soon? Not now? Not when she just witnessed Gabriel making out with her? He sighed loudly. No one was in the washroom right now and he cursed. Hotly, he got up and looked at his pathetic self in the mirror. That was the face of a man who’s fucked up. 

He kissed her in an act of jealousy. He kissed her because Gabriel kissed her. God, he didn’t deserve to kiss her. He’s fucked Gabriel, he doesn’t deserve to be jealous! But he was, in that moment he was. Was it Mira’s teasing smirk? Was it because she claimed him as hers? Was it because it’s been more than half a year of pining for this girl and he couldn’t handle it anymore? It could be all of the above and so much more. 

Sighing, Deimos exited the washroom and was brought back into the dark, purple and blue bowling alley. His group of friends were the largest and loudest group here, the black lights making them glow brilliantly. Mira mingled with them, laughing and chatting with Raven, munching on nachos and sipping bubbling drinks. She met his gaze and waved him over. 

“Daniel beat Sophie and stuff is heated now,” she laughed as he settled beside her. Deimos glanced at the two top players who were glaring at each other. He let out a nervous chuckle. 

“Who do you think is going to win,” Gabriel asked suddenly, popping behind Mira and hugging her head. “My bet is on Sophie.”

“Daniel,” Raven pointed a cheesy nacho chip at him. 

“Sophie,” Mira replied. 

“Sophie.” Deimos shrugged. 

Mira and Gabriel sneered at him. “Good choice,” they said in unison. Before Deimos could do anything stupid, it was his turn to bowl and keep his mind off Mira’s lips. It didn’t last long though after two swings and two pins left standing. Mira went up to bowl and patted him on the shoulder, her bowling skills terrifically horrible with her balls hitting the gutter twice and leaving all her pins standing mockingly. 

“Let the big kids play,” Sophie said sarcastically. Mira rolled her eyes dramatically and flopped down between Deimos and Gabriel. Magnificently, Sophie bowled and got a clean strike, infuriating Daniel with a large dramatic gasp. Everyone laughed at their silly banter. As it got deeper into the night, drinks were ordered and consumed, Mira getting tipsy with Gabriel. Deimos opted out to not drink since he had to drive these idiots home, but it wasn’t so bad since their drunken shenanigans were amusing. Mira was the type to giggle a little bit too loudly and flush pink. She sabotaged the neck-and-neck game between Daniel and Sophie by pulling them into hugs mid-swing and tickling them. At one point, when it was Daniel’s turn to swing, Gabriel ran over and threw it for him. Hilariously, he got a strike and everyone lost their fucking minds. 

In the end, after three rounds, Sophie, as expected, came out victorious while everyone else was stupidly wasted. Mira had ended up draped against Deimos, giggling happily with her face all red. Raven and Gabriel were drunkenly dancing to the music and Annie was tending to her defeated boyfriend. The sober ones, Daniel, Sophie and Deimos, thanked the owners and dragged their drunk friends out, the night sky pitch black now. The highways were empty, lit by orange streetlights and the obnoxious neon of the bowling alley. Gabriel and Mira flopped into Deimos’ truck, Gabriel in the back giggling and draping his long body across the seats while Mira chugged some water and sat beside Deimos. 

“Can you idiots buckle up?” He asked before he turned on the engine. 

Mira smiled at him. “Why don’t you do it for me?” She teased. 

“Christ, Mira,” Deimos rolled his eyes. He reached over and helped her. Mira’s face was close and he tried to ignore the fluttering feeling in his chest. Gabriel in the back was a goner, so Deimos didn’t even try with him. He’ll drive carefully. After he ignited the engine, Mira drowsily took over the music and played some soft indie that carried them down the highway. She had this gentle smile on her face whenever Deimos glanced over that made him want to walk into the sea. Gabriel on the other hand was lying on his back and staring at the ceiling, eyes distant. 

“I don’t believe I’ve never thought of that,” he mumbled. 

“Hm?” Mira blinked drowsily. 

“Hm?” Deimos mimicked her. 

“Being aromantic,” he mumbled. “Not once in my life have I ever…considered the fact that I don’t feel romantic attraction.”

Mira glanced at Deimos. 

“It makes so much fucking sense,” he said, mystified. “I always knew it. I never just…had a name for it. Maybe aromantic isn’t even the name for it. But it’s just a feeling. I’m happy with just you guys being with me.” He giggled. “And getting a good wholesome fuck now and again.”

Mira snorted. “Gross!”

“Fuck romance! Fuck dating! I hate that normal bullshit! Let my love life be confusing!”

Deimos laughed. 

“You guys will be there for me when I’m lonely right?” Gabriel asked suddenly. 

“Depends, do you want cuddles or something else?” Mira teased. 

“Maybe both, I’ve slept with both of you,” he teased back. 

Deimos’ blood ran cold. 

“What?” Mira laughed. 

Oh no. Oh no, no, _no._ He gripped the steering wheel tightly. Half of him hoped Mira was drunk enough to not completely process what he said, but when he glanced over, Mira looked at him bewildered with those big brown eyes. He panicked and swerved off the road. He couldn’t drive like this. 

“Deimos?” Mira asked softly. 

“Oh, shit,” Gabriel realized as well. “Deimos, I didn’t mean to-”

“S-Shut up, please,” Deimos snapped hotly. 

Mira gasped. “Wait, have you actually slept with him?!”

Deimos flushed red. He glanced at Mira, her eyes wide with shock. 

“Deimos, I’m so sorry, I-I didn’t mean to slip up,” Gabriel pleaded, quickly sitting up and grabbing his shoulder. Hotly, Deimos shoved him off and got out of the car. Like a coward. He wanted to walk straight into a car, but he just stomped into soft grass on the opposite side of the road. 

_Fuck, fuck, fuck._

He swore out loud in Greek. 

“Deimos!” Mira called out. He heard the truck door slam. “Deimos, are you ok?” He heard her footsteps approach her. 

“Go away,” he hissed. He was ashamed at how high-pitched his voice was. He was afraid. He didn’t know what to do. H-he was going to get hurt. He’s going to get yelled at. H-He’s…

A hand touched his arm and roughly he shoved Mira away. He saw her shocked expression. 

“Deimos,” she said, her voice tight with shock. It made him feel weak. “So you slept with him, huh?”

He stared at the ground. 

“How long has this been going on for?”

Her voice was calm. 

_“Deimos.”_

“We were planning to tell you,” he muttered. “I-I just wasn’t ready yet.”

“Are you two dating?”

“No.”

“So just sexual partners.”

“Yes.”

Mira sighed. “I’m not angry at you,” she murmured. “I’m not your girlfriend.”

He bit his lip and hotly looked at her. “What if I want you to be?” 

Her eyes widened in surprise. It made his guts twist. 

“D-Deimos, I-I,” she stuttered nervously. “U-Um…”

“You don’t have to answer me,” he hissed out in Greek. He didn’t mean to. But he was just so angry and pathetic and a coward he spoke instinctively in his native language. Mira looked even more confused now and it just made Deimos angrier. “I fucking love you but I’m a fucking coward,” he shouted in Greek. “I’m a pathetic nobody that fucks their crush’s ex-boyfriend because he’s lonely.”

“Deimos, I don’t understand,” Mira said calmly. 

“You’re not supposed to understand me!” He cursed in Greek. He gasped for air and looked at her longingly. Mira frowned. 

“Even if I was your girlfriend or not, I’m not going to be angry at you,” she stated. “I want to know your part of the story before getting angry.”

“You should just get angry at me and punch me in the face,” he hissed in English. Mira looked relieved. “I was lonely.” 

She paused. “Why?”

“B-Because, I-I,” he hiccupped and realized he was crying. He was pathetic. “I fucking love you and it hurts.”

She was absolutely still. 

“And it’s none of that bullshit fluffy _‘I love you’_ crap you always spew out,” he spat. “It’s fucking painful and stupid and it makes me want to kiss the shit out of you every aching second we’re together.” Mira still stood there. He groaned and cursed under his breath. “Just punch me in the face, I fucking deserve it.”

Mira sighed hotly. “Fine,” she spat. Then she was stomping up to him. Roughly, she shoved him and he tumbled back in shock. He should have expected this, but he totally wasn’t. Once more, Mira shoved him hard and then again. Her face twisted in anger and then she hooked her foot behind his and shoved him one more time. This time, he tumbled and fell, Mira falling right with him. He landed hard on his back, the wind almost knocked out of him while Mira straddled his waist, fist up and ready to knock him out. Deimos winced and closed his eyes instinctively, waiting for the final blow, but hands grabbed his cheeks and Mira’s lips were on his. Shocked, his eyes snapped open and he pushed her back. 

“What the fuck,” he blurted out in Greek. 

Mira’s face was twisted up in pain. “You’re a fucking dick,” she spat. “I fucking love you.” Then she kissed him again, Deimos immediately losing all the strength to keep him up. Mira pinned him to the soft grass, her lips pressed against his, her hands cradling his face, her hair tickling his cheeks. She gasped as they parted, her eyes slowly opening up and she stared hard at him. 

“This is the first time I’ve seen you cry,” she mumbled. “I’m sorry.”

Deimos blinked, his vision blurring for a second before more tears fell. “I-I…” He didn’t know what to do. “Don’t be.”

Mira wiped his tears away. “I love you.” 

He started to cry harder. 

“This isn’t real,” he cried in Greek. “No, this can’t be true.”

“Deimos, I can’t speak fucking Greek,” she hissed. He rubbed his eyes dry and looked at her. 

“What the fuck,” he blurted out in English. Roughly, he grabbed her neck and kissed her deeply. She responded to him and slid her tongue between his lips, Deimos’ body trembling to her taste. She tasted bitter like fruity coolers and cheap lip balm, but she tasted like Mira. She smelled like Mira and she was warm like Mira. However, unlike all the soft, fleeting kisses she’s given him before, this one was deep and bruising. It was dizzily pleasurable, both individuals shivering to the rough kiss of the other. Deimos nibbled on her lower lip and she whimpered in surprise. Longingly, she brought both their lips back together and explored inside him, the male letting out a groan. Then they parted, gasping, red-faced and starry-eyed, two idiots on a patch of grass beside a highway in the middle of the night. One kid was crying because the girl of his dreams just kissed him. 

“I-I just did that,” Mira blurted out loud. Deimos sat up, Mira in his lap. 

“Y-You did,” he gasped. “W-We did.”

“Deimos, I love you,” she said quickly. “U-Um, like the same way you love me.” She bit her lip. (He kissed those lips!!) “I thought it was pretty obvious since I’ve been drawing and painting you naked non-stop.” She laughed nervously. “G-God, and that one incident with your white lingerie.” She covered her face. 

“I didn’t find you to be the kinky type,” he commented in Greek again. Hotly, Mira glared at him. He burst out laughing. 

“You dork,” she hissed. “At least tell me one thing you said.”

He smiled and pulled her into another kiss. “I like you a lot,” he laughed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh wow look at these young adults being sane and logical and not following into the normal romance cliches  
> what a surprise  
> no drama for these kids, communication is key  
> (thanks for all the love and kudos guys, we're almost done!!! aaaa get ready for lots of smut)  
> also hey I made a playlist to the novel as well as artwork inspired by it (aka scenes from the book lmao)  
> [Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdNJMLCKCikYFpxx7o-QAUkjo-I_dJJhQ)  
> [Artwork](https://tapas.io/episode/742257)
> 
> (maybe i'll post the artwork onto here after we finish up the novel, wanna try to keep it at least a little organized)  
> (also the artwork has potential spoilers)  
> also i'll be posting every thursday now, I've got a plan lmao


	11. Deimos' Old Truck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deimos explains. Gabriel cries. Mira understands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> damage control

What the hell is happening right now? 

Mira is kissing Deimos, the idiot Greek boy with a thing for lingerie, on some stupid patch of grass beside an empty highway.

God, are his lips so ever soft. And god, she probably stinks of booze. And god, when he shouts in his native language it’s dizzyingly hot. But also infuriating. But also hot. And god, he’s fucked Gabriel. And he likes Mira the same way? 

Their lips parted and Mira tingled all over. She’s wanted to do this ever since she’s seen him in lingerie. Maybe even longer. Jesus Christ, so many things happened at once.

“O-Ok,” she stuttered. God, her heart was threatening to break out of her chest. She stared at Deimos’ heated stare and wanted to kiss him over and over again. She was parched from pining for this idiot for half a year. But, she had to be sensible, even though she was still a little out of it from downing a bunch of coolers at the bowling alley. Both of them knew Gabriel was inside his truck probably either panicking or watching them make out. 

Deimos chuckled. “You’re so cute.”

“I hate you,” Mira whined, blushing. She kissed him one more time. “Ok, ok, ok,” she stuttered. “We have to go and talk to Gabriel.”

Deimos’ hand was on her cheek and she kissed it softly. He nodded nervously. Mira smiled at him weakly. 

“I’m not going to hate you,” she smiled. 

“Y-Yeah,” he mumbled, slowly getting up. He helped her and both of them headed for the blinking truck. Calmly, Mira opened the back door and saw Gabriel shoved in the corner, his head in his hands. With a little hop, Mira slid inside and Deimos followed after her. 

“Gabriel,” she murmured softly. Unlike Deimos, Mira knew how to comfort Gabriel. They’ve gone through enough fights. Slowly, she slid her arm around his shoulders and rubbed his arm. “Gabriel, we’re not mad.”

Shakily, he sighed. “I’m sorry, Deimos.”

“It’s…ok,” he replied softly. Mira glanced at him and moved a little closer to Gabriel so Deimos could rest his hand on Gabriel’s lap. He tensed up and looked at them. Mira frowned at the dewy-eyed look he gave them. 

“I-I really didn’t mean to…” He trailed off, lip quivering. “Mira, I’m so sorry, I-I knew how much y-you liked Deimos.”

“It’s ok,” Mira murmured, resting her head on his shoulder. “Just talk to me.” She glanced at Deimos. “Both of you.”

Apparently, their little affair happened about a month ago when Mira kissed Deimos in the spur of the moment. Deimos was beyond lonely at that point and Gabriel took advantage of his moment of weakness to sleep with him. Deimos did insist everything was consensual and fumbled with his words talking about how many times they did it. Mira listened to them patiently, holding Deimos’ hand as he suddenly started to just _talk_ to her about his feelings. It was nice, he was a very quiet and closeted person, yet inside his old truck with Gabriel and Mira, he kept talking and talking. The more he spoke, the more Mira realized they both had the same problems. Overwhelming feelings, a need for another, the reach for the nearest person, and the fear of retaliation. Mira’s done his deed a million times already, and even with Gabriel. But, it seems Deimos hasn’t. He hated himself because he did it, but also cherished Gabriel so much it hurt. 

“I’m sorry,” Deimos muttered. There was tears in his eyes. 

Mira swiped at them and clutched onto his hands tight. “You’re forgiven. It’s ok, Deimos, I’m not mad. How could I be? I know how you feel. I’ve done it too.”

“I should have just fucking told you I liked you instead of sleeping with Gabriel. This wouldn’t have happened. I wouldn’t have hurt both of you.”

“I don’t regret one second being with you,” Gabriel said evenly. “And you shouldn’t be apologizing, I…I kissed you first. Mira, _I’m sorry.”_

Mira smiled crookedly and grabbed onto his shaking hand. The three of them were quiet for a moment. 

“Both of you guys are forgiven. I’m serious, it’s absolutely _ok._ We weren’t in a relationship when this happened. One-night stands come and go. You cheated on no one.”

“I love you, though,” Deimos blurted out. He looked at Gabriel, gnawing on his lip. “Gabe, you’re cool, but you’re never going to…be as incredible as Mira, I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok,” Gabriel murmured, smiling. “You guys are meant for each other.”

Mira’s blood boiled. Deimos has never been this upfront with his feelings before. He’s never been so…honest. Truthful with tears in his eyes. _Beautiful._

“Fuck, I love you too,” Mira laughed, grabbing hold of his face and kissing him again. She planted little pecks all over his face. “It’s ok, it’s ok, _it’s ok._ Don’t feel guilty, you aren’t guilty.” No way in hell was she ever going to treat him the way his ex-girlfriend treated him. A little part of her was angry Gabriel and Deimos slept together, but such a bigger part understood. They weren’t a couple when this happened. Deimos is free to do whatever he wants. And if that’s getting rid of this overwhelming loneliness in his heart, so be it. Mira has done it too. It happens to everyone. That rebound girlfriend in middle school. That guy at the bar. That extra third wheel. People will seek out warmth. Some will climb mountains for it, others will reach for the nearest warm body. 

Mira can be that warm body now. 

Throughout the night on the side of the highway, Gabriel also opened up about his search for the perfect partner. How it’s led him nowhere and he too gets intensely lonely at night. Deimos was there for him, others have been there for him, people too cruel, people too nice. He sometimes wondered if he even deserved a partner, and how their relationship dynamic would even start. Where was the line? He would gladly sleep with someone, but romantic commitment was foreign and sometimes scary to him. But then what was platonic friendship? What was he? Did he have a label? 

Mira calmed him down through it all, telling him that not everything has a label and he shouldn’t feel like he needed to. He knew what made him happy and that’s what mattered. She even opened up about her curiosity about polyamory, and how she didn’t want to label herself as polyamorous since she felt very content about just having one person in her life. But, she didn’t want to rule out the possibilities and made that clear to Deimos. 

Deimos took it too well. 

“That’s one thing I like about you,” he muttered softly. They’d ended up turning off the engine and curled up in the backseats. His fingers played with her hair. “You’re so accepting of everything. My bisexuality, Gabriel’s romantic attraction, our love for lingerie.”

Mira smiled softly and she shrugged. “Thanks, dude,” she laughed quietly. Gabriel rested on her shoulder and chuckled. 

“Deimos is right, you’re always so easy to talk to about anything,” he muttered. 

“G-Guys, I’m flattered, but you two are wonderful as well.” She blushed. “I’m embarrassed.”

Deimos snickered and kissed the side of her head. “Not really.”

Mira stared up at him, spiteful. “We should play a game.”

“What?” Gabriel laughed. “What a way to avoid flattery.”

“It’s a complimenting game when everyone compliments one person and that person can only say thank you in response,” Mira interjected. 

“Sounds like a dumb game,” Deimos said bluntly.

Gabriel laughed. “Let’s play it,” he snickered. “Let’s roast Deimos first.”

Mira giggled and settled in. The Greek male just rolled his eyes. 

“Good luck,” he muttered. 

“Hey, buckaroo, you can only say thank you.” Mira poked him. 

He sneered at her. “Thank you.”

“I love that even though Deimos tries to act tough he’s just a big softie,” Mira said happily. “He genuinely cares about others feelings and will try anything in his power to make a shitty situation better. He also gets me coffee and pizza a lot.”

Deimos was blushing from ear to ear. “T-Thanks.”

“I like how Deimos is like, ridiculously hot,” Gabriel interjected bluntly. Mira laughed. “But, it is a shame that he can’t see that about himself. He’s a beautiful man. And moreover, I love that he is trying new things and being more open to his feminine side. I love the chokers and painted nails and his adorable pink sweater.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Mira exclaimed. “I’m so happy he’s able to do things that genuinely make him happy.” She sighed. “Whenever I’m with him, it’ll always be a good time. He’s a great person to be around.”

“Also, he looks fucking great in lingerie,” Gabriel coughed. Mira laughed and fist bumped him. 

Deimos was in his sweater, his face burning bright red. “T-Thank you,” he grumbled, incredibly embarrassed. “Is it Gabriel’s turn yet?”

“Sure,” Mira laughed. 

“Oh thank god, I hate both of you,” Deimos said in one breath. “I hated every second of that.”

“Was it the lingerie part?” Gabriel teased. 

“You can only say ‘thank you’, scrub,” Deimos hissed. 

Mira giggled and laced her hands into Deimos and Gabriel’s. “I love that Gabriel is so positive and understanding of everything. He doesn’t take the romance high school drama bullshit and can always communicate his feelings clearly and straightforward. Whenever I talk to him, I know he’ll still love me afterwards.”

Gabriel smiled brightly at her. “Thank you.”

Deimos thought hard. “Even though he’s a flirty dickhead, he still cares about the other party. He knows people’s boundaries and won’t overstep them.”

“Yeah, he’s very particular on safe words and consent,” Mira commented. “Also, super sex positive.”

“Extremely sex positive,” Deimos added. He paused and blushed. “He knows how to make someone feel good.”

Mira stared at him in bewilderment. “Damn, you tamed the beast,” she giggled to Gabriel. 

“Thank you,” he sneered. “Now for the fated Mira’s turn.”

“What if I wanted to flatter you more?” Mira said sarcastically. 

“Time’s up,” Deimos said. She groaned and sunk into the seat.“I love how passionate Mira is about everything,” he began. “Her eyes sparkle when she talks about space or colours or art, and it just rubs off on everyone. She also has this way of talking to people that doesn’t seem too preachy or over-bearing.”

Mira blushed and whined into her hands. It was weird to hear Deimos talk about her. She was seeing another side to him that she was falling for _hard._

“Being with her is an adventure,” he murmured. “I love every moment.”

“Gross, Deimos, this romantic side to you is making you less hot now,” Gabriel laughed, crinkling his nose. 

“Shut up,” he groaned, rubbing his neck nervously. “I’ve learned so much from her and met so many amazing people because of her.”

“Including me?” 

“Including you,” he admitted. 

“Thank you,” Mira muttered, her voice shaky. 

“I can’t really top Deimos here,” Gabriel sighed. “Mira’s great. Deimos is great. I’m great.”

Mira giggled and kissed the side of his head. “I’m happy you moved back here.”

“I am too,” he laughed. “Crazy stuff happened in the big city.”

“Oh?” Mira smirked. “Do tell.”

“You’re going to regret it.”

“Fight me,” she sneered. 

“How do you feel about me being a barista?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the love guys <3  
> if you haven't noticed already, I've added this book to a series  
> so yep, get ready for some poly action in the future volume coming soon!  
> (it's gonna be a hot mess)  
> (it already is a hot mess)


	12. Bright Pink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mira always showed how much she loved Deimos through her art.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two more chapters guys we're almost there  
> also yes i changed the title to "Stupidly Beautiful - Spring"  
> seasons am i right  
> It's more poetic than just Stupidly Beautiful Volume One (hack hack, ugh ew)  
> Next volume is summer  
> and u know what they say about summer  
> (it's HOT)  
> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

“This is dumb,” Deimos commented. Mira rolled in his bed and sighed. 

“No it’s not.”

“Yes, it is. This is super dumb, why should I dress up for a dumb exhibit?”

“Because you’re the muse.”

“Still dumb, we’ve gone to exhibits in our sweatpants.”

“That’s because your face or my name wasn’t plastered across the walls.”

He groaned and walked over to his mirror. Mira smiled at him from behind, enjoying her view as Deimos pushed his freshly showered hair back and buttoned his sleeves. He wore black slacks that were tight and a black button up with white accents. It was the only formal thing he owned and when Mira arrived, she made it very apparent that she loved every inch of it. Her lip bite with red lipstick was great. 

“You’re staring,” he commented.

“You’ve got a nice ass,” she commented. 

“I’d say you look cute, but you look like hot trash sprawled out on my bed like that.”

“Am I not sexy?” She joked, striking a pose. She wore a black knee-length dress covered in stars with black thigh highs. Deimos couldn’t call her sexy, but she was incredibly cute to the max. Renee obviously helped her with her makeup, Mira glowing and brimming with confidence. Her red lips, as Deimos said before, were fucking hot. He wanted to kiss her badly, but he didn’t know what would happen to those sharp lips. She also had winged eyeliner that was fucking boss. 

“Not really,” he sneered. Mira laughed and got out of bed. She hugged him from behind, his heart fluttering as her hands slid across his chest. 

“Are you wearing a bralette?” She asked softly. There was a hint of playfulness in her voice. 

“And if I was?” Deimos was fixing his hair. 

Mira slid her hands slower, feeling the fabric for bumps. When she hit his bralette, she paused and swirled her finger in circles across his button up, feeling the change in texture. 

“I wanna kiss you,” she muttered softly. 

“Your lipstick is gonna smear.”

Mira sighed. “You’re still new to this makeup game, but dude, I specifically brought emergency lipstick for instances like these.”

“Oh really?” He smirked. He turned around and looked down at her. Her trademark smirk stretched across her face, though there was this foreign hunger in her eyes that excited him. Slowly, Mira unbuttoned his shirt and Deimos was actually breathless at how daring she was? He blushed when she got halfway through and slid her fingers against his skin. 

“Hey, it’s the same colour as my lips,” she laughed. 

Deimos chuckled. “I swear I didn’t plan that.”

Mira smiled softly and looked up at him. God, that smile ebbed off of him and he bent down to kiss her gently. Her hands slid to his waist as he cradled her face, both individuals pulling them closer together. Then they parted, panting and gasping a little, staring down and up at one another, eyes wide with wonder. Soundlessly, Mira’s hands slid up his stomach, to his chest, and she teased his nipples through the red fabric. Deimos bit his lip, leaning against his mirror as Mira did so, feeling tingles all the way down his toes. Mira planted several little kisses on his bralette while flicking and teasing his nipples like a jerk. He whimpered a little, the feeling dizzying and disorienting. He’s played with his nipples a million of times before, but having someone else touch him always made it feel like his first time. Sharply, he gasped when Mira licked his swollen buttons, shivers running down his spine. 

She stared up at him again, mesmerized with this stupidly cute smile and sparkling eyes. He kissed her hard this time, deep and passionate, and swept her off her feet. She laughed and both idiots fell on top of Deimos’ bed with a soft thud. 

“Do you have a thing for nipples?” Deimos laughed. He straddled her. “This is your second time.”

Mira smirked and slid her hands to tease his. He shivered a little, the cold sensation of her saliva and rough texture of the bralette making his nipples hard and sensitive. 

“I love boobs, if that’s what you’re saying,” she snickered. “And I love lingerie on any body type.”

Damn. Deimos bit his lip and guided Mira’s hands back to his chest. Slowly, he let her push his bralette up and reveal his swollen buttons. The girl smiled and laid on the bed comfortably, Deimos sitting in her lap as she touched them softly. She was slow, every little flick and prod sending shivers down his spine. 

“You’ve played with them a lot, no?” Mira asked tenderly. 

“Yeah,” he murmured. 

“They’re sensitive.” She ghosted her nail over the tip of his nipple and it sent waves of pleasure. It felt like the sensitivity doubled and he bit his lip to hold back a whimper. 

“Y-Yeah,” he gasped. 

“So do you like lingerie in a sexual way as well?” Mira questioned softly. 

“Of course I do,” he groaned as Mira teased him in teasing circles. 

“Your partner wearing it or you?”

Deimos blushed. Shakily, he unzipped his pants and revealed the red panties he wore. Mira’s eyes widened. He’s never shown her this part of himself yet. But he wanted to show her. 

“I guess that answers my question,” she murmured. She sat up and pulled Deimos down to kiss him once more. His eyes rolled back and he groaned, Mira’s tongue exploring every inch of him. He kissed her jaw and neck, and suddenly, Mira grabbed his hand to place on her breast. He felt through her dress and immediately knew she was wearing a lace bra. His heart sped up. 

“It’s white in honour of you,” she whispered, a teasing smile on her face. 

“You’re going to kill me,” he groaned. 

She snickered. “Maybe after the exhibit. I kind of need you.”

Deimos sighed. “God, the _exhibit._ Can we just skip it?”

“No,” Mira laughed. “This is important to me.” She got up again and Deimos knew they weren’t going to continue, which only made him more light-headed as he pulled down his bralette and felt the coolness of Mira’s saliva stick to his nipples. People wouldn’t know that this girl licked and teased his nipples and then left him out to dry. God, he wanted to shove her against a wall and make out with her hard. 

Mira fixed her appearance and pulled out her emergency lipstick. When Deimos entered the brightly lit washroom, Mira glanced over at him and laughed, pointing the red smears on his lips. Gently, she wiped off her kisses around his cheeks and bit her lip. 

“You wouldn’t look bad with red lipstick,” she admitted softly. 

“Oh really?” Deimos smirked. 

“Would you let me?”

Deimos stared at her lips. She looked great. He blushed a little. “Sure.”

“Absolutely sure?”

He felt safe with her. He felt like he could do anything he desired. “Yeah.”

 

Mira smiled and laughed and hugged so many people. She was still new to this “social networking” thing when it came to her art, but it was nice to be flattered. It was nice to see familiar faces from her high school and foreign faces like her department’s alumni. She met teachers and professors, bloggers and friends, people that drove out of their way to see her work. Standing around her pieces and her friend’s pieces, she felt alive. Her all-nighters, her stress, her anxiety, all blew away as people took her work in with sparkling eyes and gaping mouths. People congratulated her on her spectacular work and patted her on the back. She got numbers and new fans. She got hugs and kisses. 

But most of all, Deimos was with her the whole time. 

Deimos, dressed so handsome in formal wear. Deimos, with his nails painted velvet red. Deimos, with his lips blood red and eyes sharp with eyeliner. Deimos, looking beautiful and wonderful and people flocking to the sight of him. No one was disgusted with a man wearing makeup. No one was disgusted with her muse portrayed in soft pink pastels, red roses, cream-coloured stars and blue cotton candy. Everyone loved him. Congratulated him, spoke to him, and made him feel validated. It made Mira’s heart twist when people came up to flatter both of them. Congrats, Mira, for the good work. Wonderful job, Deimos, for the excellent modeling. Beautiful couple. 

_Beautiful couple._

Such a phrase was said many times over and over again, and Mira could reply with a, “thank you.” Deimos was her boyfriend. _Deimos was her boyfriend._ Her best friend, her boyfriend, her muse. He was hers and she was his. 

“Jesus Christ, you two are on fire tonight,” Raven commented when Mira and Deimos slipped away from the suited and dressed figures to the champagne table. Mira, bubbly and happy-drunk from everyone’s compliments, smiled bright and giggled. She glanced at Deimos, who had this dazzling red-lipped smile that made her melt, laced their fingers together. 

“This is insane,” Deimos laughed. “A good kind of insane, though.”

“Everyone is checking you out,” Raven commented, pointing to a blue-suited figure hanging with Gabriel. He noticed them staring and looked down at his shoes. Mira laughed, too hyped and happy to be jealous. 

“I’m not surprised,” Mira elbowed Deimos playfully. “Look at his dork.”

“Superb makeup skills,” Renee interjected. She wandered over with her boyfriend. “Though, not the best.”

“Ouch,” Mira laughed. 

“Next time there’s an event, call me over and I will make both of you glow.” She winked. “Have you seen this highlight?”

“A true artist,” Mira giggled. “I will. I should have called you earlier, but we were doing stuff.”

“I’m stuff,” Deimos sneered. 

Mira paused and looked at him. Both of them cracked up. _Oh holy shit_ , Deimos does puns. This is a new revelation and she is in love with it. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Renee interrupted quickly. “Are you guys a thing now?”

Mira looked at Deimos and he nodded with a big smile on his face. God, he was so fucking cute!!!

“Fuck yes!” Raven hooted. “Pay up, honey.”

“You bet on us again?” Mira laughed. Renee and Micheal groaned, both pulling out a ten. 

“Wait, _again?”_ Deimos added. 

“We bet how long it was going to take Mira to realize she’d fallen hard for you and how long it would take for you guys to finally date,” Raven explained, waving her new twenty bucks in his face. “I fucking knew it would take less than a year.”

Deimos and Mira exchanged crazed looks and burst out laughing. Raven, Renee and Micheal went parading around for her other roommates to pay up. Apparently, Annie was also going to be a little bit richer at the end of the night while her boyfriend, Sophie and the others weren’t. 

“You have stupidly great roommates,” Deimos laughed. 

“Get ready for the stupidly great group dates,” Mira joked. She looked up at him, smiling warmly. 

“God, I can’t wait.” He rolled his eyes. “Are we going to wear couple clothes?”

“If you want to.”

“I’d say we’re coupling right now.” She shrugged and laced both of their hands together. 

He chuckled. “I kind of want to kiss you.”

“You kind of can,” she teased. “We’re both wearing lipstick.”

“It’s kind of the R-rated kind of kissing though.”

Mira snickered. She stood on her tippy toes and Deimos bent down to kiss her. They giggled, a little tipsy on champagne now. 

“I caught that on camera,” Gabriel interrupted. “Gonna blast that all over social media. Get ready for your Snapchats and your Instagrams to be on _fire._ ” He waved his phone in front of their faces, sneering. 

“Oh boy, can’t wait,” Deimos said sarcastically. Gabriel smiled brightly at them and pulled them both into a hug. 

“The show is a success, I’m so proud of you both,” he whined happily. “I tried to get everyone I knew to come.”

“Is that why you have a huge gang following you tonight?” Mira joked. 

Gabriel glanced over at the tall men and short women that wandered through the gallery, a little lost and confused, but ultimately impressed. “I’ve got my barista gang and our high school sports team gang.”

Mira laughed. “So you invited people you work with and people you’ve slept with.”

Gabriel chuffed. “I did it for you, and this is all I get?”

Deimos burst out laughing. “Yeah, this is all you’re getting.”

Gabriel pouted. “Can I at least get a parting kiss?”

“A parting kiss?” Mira cocked an eyebrow. 

“I’m moving on from you guys,” he said dramatically. “I’ve figured out that I wouldn’t want a romantic relationship with you two, you guys are grossly romantic.”

“Sorry we’re so in love,” Mira teased, hugging Deimos tightly. 

Gabriel made a face. “That’s why I’m dumping you.”

Deimos rolled his eyes. “Ok, ok, come here, you jerk.”

“Both of you dorks bend down, I’m short.”

After a flurry of giggles, Gabriel walked back to his group with two deep red kiss marks on his cheeks. 

 

God, he loved Mira. 

Deimos loved Mira so much. 

Staring up at the paintings and photos of him, he realized how much she loved him back. Photos of him in pink sweaters and amidst flowers, paintings of him covered in pastels and stars, he realized how much Mira loved him. How much she worshiped his body and how much thought she put into every piece. He saw a large painting of him lying on a bed and remembered when he modeled for her. He marveled at the thought that one messy charcoal sketch turned into this large painting where everything was in greys and blacks until it hit the light coming out of an imaginary window that pooled over his face and hips. It bathed him in pinks, blues and purples, pastels and splatters. Stars dotted his face like freckles, flowers sprouted from his hair, planets rotated around his head. 

He saw the large photograph compilation of himself. They were shaped like little polaroids, each photo a tiny adventure he remembered. Deimos in the snowy meadow. Deimos standing in the rain. Deimos sleeping in her bed. Deimos sitting in an empty lecture hall. Deimos lying in a movie theater. Deimos staring up at paintings. Deimos in his truck. Deimos dancing on an empty, orange-lit highway. Deimos in a neon-coloured bowling alley. He read the captions to them, realizing that each title was a colour. Deimos in the snowy meadow was pastel pink. Deimos sleeping in her bed was warm yellow. Deimos dancing on an empty, orange-lit highway was city-star orange. Deimos in a neon-coloured bowling alley was neon pink. 

God, he loved this idiot. 

Glancing over at the little podium, he saw her chatting with the other artists like Dede and Frank who were nervously awaiting their turn to get up and speak. An alumni in their department got everyone to gather around, Deimos getting a seat in the front with the other muses, and sat through the introduction and the applause for the artists in a daze. His eyes were focused on Mira and she smiled faintly back at him, still a little shy and nervous to be in front of everyone. 

Dede went first and chatted about how her best friends were her muses, and how most of them were artists contributing to the show. Frank chatted about his late brother that died in a car crash and how he wanted to immortalize the memory of him. Simon’s muse was his mother and joked about how he still lived in her basement. Artists said their words and went, Mira awaiting patiently in the back. She was third last, and the artist with the most pieces, and she crumpled her cue cards nervously as the line got smaller and smaller. Deimos just wanted to run up to her and tell her it was alright, but he stood his ground and smiled at her reassuringly all the way through. Then, she was up on the podium, smiling and laughing nervously, looking over the crowd and her eyes landing on Deimos. 

“Well, hello everyone,” she greeted softly. “I’m Mira Santos, and my best friend, Deimos Auguste right over there is my muse.” She gestured to him and he smiled back at her. “And my whole theme around my work was to showing how beautiful Deimos was in the simplest ways. Everyone has a moment where they’re just utterly stunning, and I wanted to capture Deimos’ moments of beauty he doesn’t realize he has.” 

It was like no one else was in the room but them. Deimos couldn’t break eye contact with her, Mira was just too beautiful. 

“He deserves so much love and from all the hardships we’ve gone through and all the little secrets of the universe I’ve unlocked with him, I wanted to dedicate this show to him. He means the world to me,” she murmured softly. “I love him.”

There were “awws” amidst the audience that made Mira chuckle. She shrugged. “What can I say, I’m lucky,” she joked. After the applause and her friends patting her on the back, Mira ran over to Deimos and he couldn’t take it anymore. Quickly, he swiped her up into his arms and kissed her hard, smiling through it all. They snuck out of the last of the artist statements to the private backrooms that the artists had access to. Deimos shoved her against the wall and kissed her hard the moment she locked the door, Mira immediately melting to the kiss. She gasped a little from his suddenly display of dominance, but welcomed it as she brought their lips back together. 

“This day is a definite pink,” Deimos muttered between kisses. Mira snickered. 

“Bright pink,” she mumbled, closing her eyes and tipping her head to the side for another kiss. 

“Thank you for all of this,” Deimos whispered, cradling her head and kissing her forehead. “I feel beautiful because of you. I’m so much more comfortable because of you. I can be myself because of you.”

“You’re welcome,” Mira whispered back. “Thank you for being with me. Thank you for being my best friend. Thank you for all the hugs and kisses and love.”

_“I love you.”_

_“I love you too.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter is gonna be hot like summer  
> get ready for s m u t  
> im gonna be MIA next week tho lol im going on a road trip so I need to schedule that  
> or maybe post it early?  
> these come out at midnight jk, it'll come as scheduled  
> ok bye thanks  
> Edit: I'm gonna release the last two chapters together next week   
> Volume Two is called Summer so I gotta get some more chapters than like, three in the summer.   
> Good news to come out next week! Stay tuned!


	13. Red Lingerie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Months of sexual frustration come out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jinkies look at all those new tags

Mira stared up at Deimos, sitting on his bed patiently. She was breathless, still buzzed from the exhibit that went deeper into the night than she expected, but also buzzed from the ride here and Deimos’ lust-laced voice. He stood at the foot of the bed, face washed and clean and hair dewy. His didn’t break eye contact as he began to unbutton his shirt, the smallest move driving Mira up the wall. The narrowing of eyes, the swaying of the hips, the parting of the lips. She swallowed thickly when he slid his button up off and onto the ground. His red bralette fit nicely on him, the lace similar to roses that glided across his chest. Then, with a little lip bite, he unzipped his pants and slid them off. Mira was a little breathless seeing how nicely the red panties looked on his inverted triangle figure. How his hips were curvaceous and chest broad. How his green eyes burned with desire. He wanted her, and she wanted him. Excruciatingly slow, he slid onto the bed and dipped his head down to Mira’s leg, landing little pecks that made her breathless. She twitched when his lips met her thighs and how those little kisses turned into teasing bites, and he pulled her legs close to him to leave deep red bruises on her inner thighs. 

“I always loved you in dresses,” he muttered. “You’d wear thigh highs that made me go insane.” 

Mira smirked at him. “I’d like to see you in thigh highs too.”

“Don’t test me,” he growled, flashing his white teeth. Mira snickered and touched his chin. Instinctively, he pressed into her palm, sighing sweetly. 

“C’mere,” Mira muttered. 

Deimos was like a panther, slow and calculated, his arms rippling as he moved up her body. She slipped her hands across his lingerie, feeling the powerful figure that moved under it. Above her, Deimos was broad and muscular. He was beautiful. He was erotic. They kissed slowly, Mira slowly opening her legs and sliding her thighs against his. He was hairless, the smoothness of his thighs wonderful against hers. They parted with a shiver, strings of saliva connecting their bitten lips. 

“Are you sure you’re ok with this?” Mira whispered. 

“I’m more than ok with this,” he groaned back. 

“Don’t be afraid to tell me to stop,” she mumbled, kissing his jaw. 

“You too.”

Mira slid her hands to his chest once more, feeling the hardness of his nipples underneath the rough red lingerie. “Tell me what you like as well,” she sighed softly. 

Deimos bit his lip and gasped as she teased his nipples in circles. _“T-That,”_ he groaned. 

“This?” Mira purred, pinching and rolling them between her fingers. 

_“Y-Yeah,”_ he stuttered. He kissed her neck and slowly moved to her chest. Mira was still dressed for the exception of her socks. Quickly, she made do with the dress, Deimos helping her take it off with some teasing bites and throwing-of-clothes across the room. They snickered at each other and for a moment, Mira let Deimos take a look at her, the same way she did a few minutes ago. His eyes were searching, burning, and scorching her skin with intensity she wasn’t used to. His emerald eyes glittered with lust. She wondered what she looked like to him. A short girl in a white lace bra and panties on his bed. A short, little girl that loves him the same way he loves her. A woman? Where did Mira stand? 

“God,” he growled. Mira’s heart fluttered. “You’re incredible.”

She laughed nervously, blushing hard. “You too,” she muttered shyly. She tugged him close again to kiss him over and over, her hands exploring the curves of his body. The dip in his back, the hardness of his nipples, the softness of his ass, she explored every inch. Teasingly, she bent her right leg, which was between Deimos’ thighs, and grinded it slowly against his hardening cock. Deimos groaned, rubbing against her, the feeling of his lace panties and soft shaven thighs against her euphoric. Mira gasped and whimpered when Deimos suddenly parted lips with her and went for her breasts, licking and biting them teasingly. He glanced up at her, amused, as he pulled down her bra with his teeth. Her boobs sprung free, dark nipples hard and sensitive. He licked her painfully slow, Mira biting her lip and smiling at him. 

“Is this revenge?” She asked softly. 

“Maybe,” he replied with a chuckle. He sucked on them hard, Mira tingling as she felt his hot tongue swirl around her nipple. However, the pleasure couldn’t be topped when he slid his hand into her panties. 

_“F-Fuck, Deimos,”_ she whimpered. _“S-Slower.”_ Her thighs trembled as his fingers found her little button. Deimos looked at her, mystified as he rubbed her clit in slow circles. 

Sex with a man was very different from sex with a woman. Mira’s been in this position many times before, but Deimos’ sheer size and weight was different. He had broad shoulders that covered her sight, and long, sturdy limbs that encased her. His fingers were rough and large, his neck to kiss thicker. With girls, they were soft. Not that Deimos wasn’t soft because his thighs and ass were great to touch, but as Mira slid her hands down and up him, it was obvious that she held a man. He was strong and that strength excited her. And yet, he was still so familiar to her with the soft lingerie, the sweet noises, and the hard nipples. There was a weakness to him that made her want to play with him. Monopolize him. Dominate him. 

Shaking, Mira whined when his fingers slipped lower and entered her. She closed her legs instinctively, gasping a little. 

“Not yet?” Deimos asked softly. 

She stared up at him. “N-No,” she whimpered. “U-Um, s-sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he whispered. He kissed her and smiled. “It’s ok.”

“Keep touching me,” she said, breathless. “J-Just maybe not there yet.”

He nodded and slid back up to her clit. She was dizzy for a moment and she gasped when he pressed against her. Prickles of pleasure built up in her. The sensation was addicting and she grinded against him. 

“What do you want?” Mira sighed. 

_“Keep touching me,”_ he groaned, grinding against her leg. 

“Where?” She murmured. She slid her hands to his nipples and flicked them softly. “Here?” She slid lower to his ass and squeezed him. “Or here?” 

Deimos stared at her. Blush covered his face. _“Nipples,”_ he whimpered. 

Mira obliged and slid her fingers underneath his bralette to rub his nipples in teasing circles the same way his fingers teased her clit. Curious, Mira moved her knee forward and rubbed against his cock. Deimos bit his lip and grinded hard on her leg, his eyes fluttering close for a moment. 

“Do you like stimulation through your lingerie?” Mira whispered. 

He looked at her, face flushed and eyes needy. He nodded. 

“Lie on your back?” She asked softly. 

Obediently, he laid on his back. Mira’s heart sped up as their power dynamic shifted, the submissive and desperate expression on Deimos’ face exciting her. She straddled him and grinded her clothed pussy against his throbbing clothed cock, both parties wearing rough lingerie. Mira undid her bra and threw it away. Deimos’ thighs tensed and he gasped, Mira immediately sliding her fingers into his mouth. He looked at her, eyes half-lidded and hungry, sucking, licking, and tasting every inch of her fingers. Then she pulled her fingers back and pushed up his bralette, swirling her dripping fingers on one nipple while bending down to lick and suck the other. Deimos groaned, stimulated top and bottom, Mira enjoying the cute noises he made when she slid her wet pussy up his cock and grinded her clit against his tip. His voice was high-pitched and he cursed a lot to himself softly. 

“Harder?” He gasped. 

Mira sucked harder on his nipple and grinded harder on his cock. He shivered, his hips involuntarily jutting out and meeting her. His thighs shook. 

_“You’re sensitive,”_ Mira purred teasingly. Deimos bit his lip and nodded. 

_“M-Mira, g-god,”_ he laughed. She giggled and kissed him. He took this moment to go back to her clit and rub her. Mira’s legs gave out and she gasped shakily. He wouldn’t stop rubbing her clit even as she slid to the side. The sensation sent prickles down her spine and she cussed when he rubbed particularly hard. 

“Sorry, was that too hard?” He whispered. 

Hastily, Mira shook her head. “N-No, I like it,” she gasped. She got closer to him, resting her forehead against his chest and rolled her hips to the rhythm of his fingers. Shakily, Deimos sucked in a breath. In this position, Mira finally saw his erection and looked up at him. Shyly, she touched his clothed cock, waiting for the verbal cue. 

_“God, fuck, yeah,”_ he sputtered out. Mira smirked and rubbed his clothed cock teasingly, feeling the outline of it through his panties. His legs trembled when she finally pulled his member out. He was cut, the tip pink and throbbing against her fingers. Mira kissed his neck as she teased him, feeling the precum dribble out as she slid her hand up and down lazily. Her heart was in her throat. There was always this spark of excitement realizing Mira’s partner was totally fucking into her. With girls, it was the first time sliding her fingers into her panties realizing she was dripping wet. With guys, it was feeling his hard cock twitch and throb to her touch. Both sensations made her dizzy. 

As she positioned her arm in a more comfortable position to touch him, Deimos also shuffled and stretched his free and clean hand to Mira’s lips. She looked up at him and licked and sucked them slowly the same way he did to hers, not breaking eye contact as she tasted him. His fingers were long and slender, beautiful fingers that she worshiped. A copious amount of saliva slicked his fingers when Deimos pulled back and he bit his lip as he didn’t guide them down to Mira’s pussy, but behind him to his ass. Mira paused rubbing him off as he began to finger himself slowly. Her heart sped up and she blushed. 

“Do you like being fingered?” She asked quickly. 

He bit his lip and nodded hastily. “M-Maybe.”

“Will you get onto your back again?” 

“Are you going to do it?”

“If you’ll let me.”

Deimos blinked rapidly. He nodded vigorously. _“P-Please.”_

 

Deimos didn’t believe what was happening. His heart rammed against his ribcage. His head throbbed. His body throbbed. Pleasure came over him so fast he was dizzy and breathless, speechless and shocked. His blood boiled and skin prickled. He felt his cock twitch and his thighs tense. 

Mira sat between his legs, bending over him, kissing him softly, the noises of their kisses erotic and echoing through his room. The same room he fantasized and masturbated in to a situation like this. A dream that seemed almost impossible was happening right now. Mira had his legs spread out and beside her hips. She kissed him with ferocity and passion he hadn’t experienced yet, a hunger and heat foreign and agonizingly exciting to him. It left him gasping for air and desperate for more. 

Mira fingered him. She fingered him with experience that made his mind go in circles and body twitch. He couldn’t stop his moans anymore, and from the smiles and hungry expression Mira gave him, she loved every second of it. With a little pop, their lips separated and Mira devoured his nipples, making his toes curl. She knew how to pleasure someone. And she knew how to do it well. God, his mind was in the clouds, he couldn’t think straight. 

_“F-Fuck,”_ he whimpered in Greek. Mira looked at him. He laughed. _“Fuck,”_ he said in English. 

Mira smiled at him. “Does it feel good?”

He gasped as she suddenly hit his prostate. Clutching onto the sheets tight, he nodded. _“F-Fucking hell,”_ he whimpered. Mira’s eyes darkened and her happy-go-lucky grin turned sinister. She stretched him out, his eyes rolling back, before rubbing against his prostate again. His legs stretched and toes curled. 

_“O-Oh my god,”_ he cried out. He couldn’t help but grind to Mira’s fingers. 

“So this is where your prostate is?” She purred. This jerk teased him again and he flinched, cock bobbing between his legs. His thighs were shaking. He’s fucked himself many times before, but having foreign hands go deeper and tease him clearer was fucking insane. He bit his lip hard and tried not to cry out. 

“Tell me if I’m hurting you,” she whispered. He nodded and gasped as Mira slid her hot fingers around his cock. She immediately found this little sensitive spot under the tip of his cock and abused it as she jacked him off. Deimos lifted his hips up instinctively, fucking into her hand and ultimately putting more pressure on his prostate. 

_“G-God, f-fuck yeah,”_ he whimpered out. 

“Harder?”

_“F-fuck, harder.”_

Mira wonderfully obliged. Deimos gasped and his hips twitched. Mira punished his prostate, fucking him hard and deep, angling her fingers just right. The noises her fingers made as she fucked him made him closer and closer to that edge, her teasing of his tip and sensitive spots another huge contributing factor. He was getting too close and his eyes fluttered shut, all his senses succumbing to the pleasure and doubling his sensitivity. 

_“I-I’m gonna cum,”_ he whimpered out in Greek. 

“Are you close?” Mira gasped. 

Hastily, he nodded. _“Y-Yes, Mira, g-god, fuck me, I a-am,”_ he cried out in a jumbled sentence of Greek and English. 

“You’re so cute,” Mira laughed. 

_“K-Kiss me,”_ he gasped. _“Fuck me harder.”_

Vigorously, Mira fucked him harder and harder, and jacked him off quicker and quicker. Deimos could barely kiss Mira back as he felt himself get closer and closer to release, his whole body tensing when he finally ejaculated into Mira’s hand. His toes curled and ass throbbed and cock twitched. He let out a silent scream and his body went into convulsions. Mira helped him ride out his orgasm high, stretching and fucking him slowly as he shook and shivered, and slowly came to a stop when he finally stopped twitching. When she pulled out, his legs twitched one more time and then he was thoroughly spent. Gasping, he looked up at the girl who just fingered the shit out of him. 

Mira was smiling. “Fuck, you’re so hot,” she commented. 

He laughed and weakly nuzzled his nose against hers. She kissed him softly. 

“I-I,” he gasped and swallowed thickly. “I can get used to that.”

“Glad to help,” she giggled. 

“Give me a second, I’ll get some wipes,” he groaned. Mira rolled off him and he reached over to his bedside drawer to pull out some tissues and wet wipes. He helped clean the spunk off Mira’s hands as well as his own before tugging her into another kiss. He kissed down her jaw to her collarbones, sighing and eventually resting his forehead against her shoulder. 

“I love you,” he muttered. 

Mira rubbed his waist. “I love you too.”

Sharply, he inhaled and exhaled. Then, slowly, he slid his hands to her panties and teased her clit. Her legs twitched. 

“Are you still up for it?” She gasped. 

“You got me off, I have to repay the favour,” he mumbled. Mira laughed. 

“What a gentleman.”

“You know me.” Gently, he settled her onto her back and wiggled his eyebrows. Mira snickered and kissed him as he slowly slid his fingers back into her panties. She was wet and it made him shiver. She was warm and soft down there, her clit a little button that immediately made Mira tremble and gasp. What a switch from fingering him a few minutes ago to gasping and shaking to his hands. He was loving this power dynamic. He was loving this girl. 

Grinning, he nuzzled their noses together and Mira giggled. He kissed her forehead as he rubbed her in circles, her vulva velvety and wet, her clit throbbing and thighs shaking. Deimos stared down at her, at her breasts, at her panties, at her eyes. She was sweaty and beautiful. God, if Mira knew how fucking sexy she was in this moment. She whimpered out when he increased the pressure, but embraced it hungrily as she whispered for more. Her voice cracked, deep and sensual, hungry and desperate. God fucking dammit, she was so hot. 

Deimos kissed her hard and felt her hand press on his fingers for even more pressure. 

“Are you ok with that?” He mumbled. 

_“I like it hard,”_ she gasped. _“Harder.”_

_“Fuck,”_ he growled. He scrubbed her clit and she welcomed it enthusiastically, the first real moan ripping out of her throat. It was raw and sensual, Mira’s hips jolting and grinding to his fingers. She gasped and bit her lip, pleading Deimos to go even harder. He sat up and pressed even _harder._ She cried out and threw her head back. 

Deimos started to slow down and in a panicked state of mind, Mira pleaded him to keep going in a sweet, high-pitched voice that made him dizzy. He scrubbed her clit and she cried out desperately. Then, her body went into convulsions and she flopped back onto the mattress, grabbing his hand to finally go slower. She whimpered out, riding out the waves of pleasure and just as Mira did to him, Deimos teased her clit and made her shiver and twitch. Mira was gasping and trembling when he finally pulled his fingers out of her soaked panties, her eyes half-lidded and misty. 

God fucking dammit, this girl was going to make him go insane. Deimos stared down at Mira, shirtless, fucked out of her mind, with her hair messy, chest heaving and panties wet. She stretched across the bed, shivering and shaking as Deimos cleaned his fingers with some more wet wipes. Mira peeled her panties off her and Deimos did as well, both of them finally naked, which was ironic because they were both completely spent now. Drowsily, Mira stared up at him and opened her arms up for him. Happily, Deimos sunk into her arms and hugged her tight. They were hot and sweaty, a little breathless, and oversensitive. But, giggles escaped their lips and kisses were shared. 

“What a way to celebrate an exhibition,” she laughed. Her giggles vibrated through him and Deimos smiled faintly. 

“We should do this more often.”

“We should.”

They smiled brightly at one another. 

“You wanna spend tomorrow marathoning some stupid show and bake cookies?” Mira asked softly. 

“Is making out allowed?”

“Making out is definitely allowed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yikes


	14. Cigarettes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deimos of leather and lace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the last chapter of volume one guys  
> check the notes at the bottom for the future of Mira and Deimos! Thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it!

Mira woke up underneath thin sheets alone. She sighed, hazily looking around in the darkness for Deimos, a little cold without him. 

He was sitting at the open window, the curtains blowing in the breeze. Tonight was a full moon, and moonlight poured on top of him, turning him silver in the milky light. He looked pale. Ethereal. Beautiful. 

“I didn’t know you smoked,” Mira mumbled out softly. 

Deimos looked at her, a still expression across his face. His eyebrows were in a permanent scowl, jaw clenched and eyes distant. Mira could smell the sharp scent of cigarette smoke, even though Deimos tried his best to keep the cigarette out the window, it balancing precariously between his slender fingers. He blinked and took a drag, his red lips sucking and blowing out white smoke slowly. Mira watched as clouds danced and swirled around his face. The scene was out of a film noir. A beautiful man, sitting shirtless on a windowsill, the moon shining on him as he took a puff, smoke like serpents that swirled around his head. A man of black and white. Of leather and lace. 

“I only smoke when I’m having a mental breakdown,” he mumbled. “Started when I started dating my abusive ex-girlfriend.”

Mira stilled. Whatever face she was making alarmed Deimos and he shook his head quickly in response. 

“You’re the best thing that happened to me, you’re not the reason I’m…like this.”

“Like what?” Mira said, pulling the covers off her and padding over to the window. The smell of bitter cigarettes were stronger here. He looked smaller up close. The deep eye bags and little cigarette butts strewn on the sill hinted that he’s been up for hours. 

“I’m scared,” he said quietly. Mira blinked and sat beside him. She reached for him and he met half-way, fingers shaking a little. His eyes were so green in this light. “I’m scared because you’re the best thing that’s happened to me…a-and I’m not used to it.”

“To what? Being happy?” She whispered softly, a little aghast. 

“Yes,” he said immediately. “It never stays that way.”

“Deimos, you deserve to be happy. If I’m the reason you’re happy, I will tear this world in two to keep you happy,” she said. He smirked a little and held onto her tighter. She brought his hand up to her lips and kissed them gently. Like a prince to his princess. But better. “I’m a little scared too, but all relationships will have its ups and downs. Staying together is what counts because we both care for each other, no?”

Deimos nodded. “Yeah. But…” He laughed and pulled his hand away and took another drag. Smoke curled out of his nose and he rubbed his eyes. “You’re going to learn all the ugly parts about me. About my father. About my ex-girlfriend. About my previous best friend.”

“And I’m ready to take them on,” she said instantly. “You’re going to learn about my ugly parts too. But we’re both going to learn about the beautiful parts also.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Absolutely.”

“You’re so stubborn.”

“You are correct,” she smiled. For a long moment, both of them were silent, staring at each other, blinking. 

Mira sighed. 

“I don’t want to lose you,” she whispered softly. “Even if the world seems to be falling apart, I don’t want to lose you.”

“I don’t either,” he mumbled. “I just… the more you learn about me, the more fucked up I am.”

“I am too,” she laughed. “Do you think living eighteen years with an abusive father is healthy?”

“No,” he chuckled. “I guess not.”

_“We kids with daddy issues have to stick together,”_ Mira quoted. It was from the first time they met- at the party. Mira was drunk and delirious. A little lonely. A little thirsty. But bewitched by Deimos. He was beautiful. So _fucking_ stupidly beautiful. 

“You’re so great,” Deimos laughed. There was that smile again. Beautiful. Glimmering. Could probably cure cancer. 

“You’re better,” she teased. He rolled his eyes and jabbed her with his toe. 

“You’re the girl of my fucking dreams,” he sighed, taking one last long drag. He blew it out slowly, right at her. She laughed, still a little dazed by the fact he smoked. 

“You’re the boy of my dreams,” she murmured. “You’re my boy in general.”

He laughed. “Fuck, you’re so great.” He shook his head amazed. 

“Dude, I’m really not, you’re just sleepy delirious,” she pointed out. 

“Nah, you just are.”

“Do you wanna fight? I think you’re better.”

“Let’s go,” he sneered, leaning over and grabbing her neck. He pulled her into a kiss and Mira smiled into it, both of them laughing in jittery relief in the end. Deimos wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly, Mira sighing as she ran her fingers through his mess of curls. He smelled strong of cigarettes. He tasted strong of cigarettes. Another side to Deimos she didn’t know about. Darker. Somber. Bitter. Of more leather and smoke than frills and lace. 

She embraced it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaand Spring is done!  
> but Summer is just around the corner B)  
> so if you don't follow my Tapas account, I've planned three volumes for Stupidly Beautiful!  
> Volume 1: Spring  
> Volume 2: Summer  
> Volume 3: Winter
> 
> Currently, I'm working on Summer (halfway there!!), but I'm planning on releasing the first chapter next week!  
> Volume 2 is about Mira and Deimos' maturing romantic and sexual relationship now with the inclusion of meeting Kalmin (spoilers: they end up as a polyamorous trio)  
> The second book is going to be a slower and longer burn because I want to flesh out the characters thoroughly and have them deal with some problems hinted in the first volume.
> 
> So yeah, next week, I'll post a sneak peek on here, Volume One, as well as provide a link to the full chapter in the notes <3 I'll be updating twice a week as well, on Mondays and Thursdays, because the dang book is called Summer and if I keep at the once per week schedule, you guys will get like, 3 chapters before it gets cold and you lose the Summer Viewing Experience(TM)  
> It's called summer and should be read in the summer because I'm insane.  
> I'll also probably post title cards I've made for the chapters as well as some other artworks I've made 
> 
> If you are starved of my children, check out my Tapas, I'm basically making a shortened version of the novel over there. 
> 
> ok, thank you guys all for the love and support <3 I wrote this dumb book like two years ago and never expected to post it online, and when I did, I never thought I'd get so much love and praise <3 You guys are seriously the reason why the hell I'm following through with these kinds of plans  
> I love you all <3 <3


	15. Kalmin.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A preview to volume two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a sneak peek into the first chapter to Stupidly Beautiful Volume Two! For people who didn't read the notes from last chapter, basically yes, I am writing a sequel to volume one that will now focus on the polyamorous relationship between Mira, Deimos and Kalmin. The second book is going to be a slower and longer burn because I want to flesh out the characters thoroughly and have them deal with some problems hinted in the first volume. Currently, I think I'm only halfway through and it's already longer than the first book, oops. It's gonna be a bumpy ride. 
> 
>  
> 
> [To read the full chapter, click here.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/11621262/chapters/26129928)
> 
>  
> 
> Also there's an artwork dump at the end so get ready for that.

Kalmin’s first impression of Mira and Deimos was…beautiful.

They were beautiful. A beautiful couple, two beautiful individuals. The moment they entered the art gallery, everyone’s eyes were on them. It might be because of Deimos’ large figure, it might be because of Mira’s short figure. It might be because of their striking blood red lips, it might be because of their matching attire. Whatever it was, it made people flock to them. Whenever Kalmin looked over at them, they were surrounded by suited and dressed figures. There was a permanent spotlight on them. At first, he couldn’t understand why. But, when he saw Mira’s artwork, he immediately knew.

Kalmin wasn’t an artist. He was a hockey player and a barista. He was half-Korean and half-black. He was bisexual. He had many labels to his name, but an artist wasn’t one of them. He didn’t understand art the way other people perceive it. His understanding went shallow while others went deep. He could only see work for its aesthetic value, not its underlying, dark themes.

So, he shouldn’t have been at this Muse artist showcase in the first place. But, Gabriel, his co-worker, dragged him along. Moreover, Aaron dragged him to come along. Aaron liked Gabriel. Gabriel, Aaron and Kalmin were co-workers. Aaron didn’t want to come alone. Kalmin and Aaron were high school friends. The puzzle pieces fit into place.

So, Kalmin was dragged into a place full of sights, sounds, and colours he was unfamiliar with. Nothing about the gallery reminded him of the rink or the gym. It was foreign to him. Foreign faces, foreign sounds, foreign smells. Gabriel dragged him through the gallery deciphering and picking apart every little art piece hung up on these tall white walls, his eyes sparkling as he spoke. Aaron fucking loved every second of it, his smile incredibly wide and his nods a little bit too vigorous. Gabriel was an artist and could dive deep into these works. A minimalist painting consisting of squares and dots was a math equation to him. He found core elements and connected the dots. He was analytical and critical, picking apart every component to make it even better. When Gabriel saw a coming-of-age-story symbolized in the colours and shapes, Kalmin saw dots and squares.

However, Mira’s art work was easier to understand. She didn’t make her themes infuriatingly obvious, but it was enough for Kalmin to appreciate better. Mira’s art was bright and colourful, warm and fluffy. Her colours were light and poppy, pastel and soft. She was a girl fascinated by her muse, fascinated with what he does, fascinated in the same way Kalmin approaches hockey. Without Gabriel’s translations, Kalmin knew Deimos, the muse, meant the universe to her. And Kalmin was being particular with using the word, “universe.” Stars covered his skin like freckles, shimmering and bright, in paintings. Planets circled around his head and body as if he was the sun.

Kalmin especially liked the painting of Deimos stretching. It was a simple pose of his arms up and back taut, eyes half-lidded and expression distant. The background was black and simple, yet the colours used to shade and colour him was expressive and fun. Gabriel tugged Kalmin to some photographs he helped Mira shoot, and similar styles were repeated in a particular piece of Deimos notably naked. He draped himself across the floor, his face and limbs painted in similar colours, and it seemed like he was sucking the colour out of the floor and depositing it into his skin. It was a magical shot and Gabriel proudly chatted about it.

Incredibly Aaron somehow got onto the topic of how Gabriel knew Mira and Deimos, and Gabriel fantastically made the mood awkward by telling them both that they were kind of his ex-girlfriend and boyfriend. Kalmin didn’t really want to deal with Aaron and Gabriel, and opted out wandering around and going back to Mira’s work. He looked at the large polaroid series she made that was basically around the theme of catching Deimos being beautiful in everyday life. Or at least that’s what Kalmin hoped it was about. Because Deimos was super hot in all these shots.

Also looking at these photos, Kalmin realized he went to school with them. Many shots were from the university campus. The little meadow, the lecture halls, the stairways, the highway. They were places that he’s passed through before, yet with Mira’s touch, she made the mundane seem ethereal.

So yeah, his first impression of both Mira and Deimos was pretty high up there. They were cool, pretty and talented people. They perceived the world differently from him, existing on a plane of existence he could never reach. They were otherworldly. Only two people knew how they thought and felt, and that was Mira and Deimos. They were out of Kalmin’s reach.

Throughout the disorienting night, they even noticed him in his dorky blue suit and smiled at him. Mira and Deimos looked at each other once and Kalmin knew they just had a long conversation between another. They were just so in sync. The same way he was with his teammates on the ice, gliding down the rink, eyes sharp and calculating, and relaying long game plans that all boiled down to winning over and over again. Their friends, Raven, Renee and Micheal (Kalmin learned from Gabriel afterwards) even visited them to announce that Mira and Deimos were a couple. Gabriel proudly boasted that he was there when it was first initialized, and Raven and Renee bribed him with information. Like the tease he was, Gabriel avoided them and ended up chatting with Mira and Deimos. When he came back, he was bubbly and giggly, blushing with two deep red lipstick kiss marks on both of his cheeks. Aaron seemed a little jealous and Kalmin had to pat him on the back and reassure him it was probably nothing. (It was probably the opposite of nothing)

Afterwards, Kalmin didn’t see Mira nor Deimos for the rest of the night. He did however, get to meet their friends as Gabriel dragged him into an after party, which was something new to him because drunken artists were kind of weirdly hilarious. It was extremely different to the usual parties he went to. Usually it consisted of one of his drunk teammates with his shirt off doing parkour on stuff that isn’t parkour. This party was something completely different. Someone had snagged helium balloons and proceeded to enact Hamlet faithfully and ever so dramatically high off helium. Someone else started a stacking war that consisted of too many champagne glasses, shoes, books and someone’s Rey-ban glasses. Even though Kalmin was the designated driver for the night, he had a pretty good time sober. He met Raven, a pretty mixed kid like him, and proceeded to make fun of everyone at the party with her. They also made bets on how long it was going to take for Gabriel to hook up with Aaron, and Kalmin had to pay five bucks in coins when Gabriel snuck Aaron into a secret room at the end of the night.

The ride after the party with them was incredibly awkward for his part, but did fist-bump Aaron when he dropped him off at home.

So, afterwards that insane weekend, Kalmin calmly went back into the rhythm of things. Work, eat and sleep. His life was pretty mundane on the off-season. He had nothing to do in the summer. Nowhere to be, no one to see, no girlfriend or boyfriend to make out with. The most he got was working with Gabriel and Aaron, but even those days seemed longer and distant.

Kalmin wouldn’t say he was lonely. He had friends he could text whenever he pleased, family that loved him, cats that he could cuddle, but he felt like something was missing. A void in his chest that sometimes haunts him deep at night. A feeling that tugs at him when he’s in social gatherings. The need for someone on a cold night.

He just tried to ignore that feeling, because it hindered on his everyday performance.

A week afterwards, Kalmin met Mira and Deimos again.

His second impression of them was…different. Vastly different. Stupidly different.

Just…weird.

He was on cash and it was a particularly busy day so he didn’t recognize Mira at first. It might be the lack of makeup. It might be the baggy shirt and pants. It might be the snapback. It might be just everything about her. Deimos didn’t favor fairly either. It was also the lack of makeup. It was the inclusion of flip flops and sweat pants. It was the glare he gave him.

Kalmin sort of…couldn’t believe it. They looked like hot trash. He couldn’t deny it.  _They looked like hot trash._

“We’re never marathoning the X-Files again,” Deimos commented when Mira paid their coffee and breakfast sandwiches (which was hilarious since it was three in the afternoon). Mira snorted and hip bumped him.

Kalmin couldn’t hold in his disbelieved laugh. “How many episodes did you go through?”

Deimos and Mira exchanged tired looks and looked back at him in sync. “We finished it,” Mira said bluntly.

He laughed out loud. “That’s incredible.”

“It was stupid, don’t encourage her,” Deimos whined.

“I have to applaud your efforts though.” He shrugged. Mira giggled and thanked them. Kalmin didn’t get to say anything afterwards as an old lady shoved her way through to get her iced tea. He couldn’t help but glance over at the couple as they waited for their food. Even though they looked tired with bags under their eyes and their dishevelled clothes, their smiles were bright. Instead of looking beautiful at the Muse showcase, they were cute. Domestic. They held hands often and nuzzled against each other. Usually it was tiring to see a couple so grossly touchy with each other, but they laughed and joked like best friends. Now Kalmin envied both their romantic and platonic relationship. They seemed fun.

The next time he saw them, Gabriel was almost done his shift and Kalmin was just about to start his. It seemed surreal to see them twice in a week. Mira was leaning against the counter, chatting and joking with Gabriel while her boyfriend sat on one of the tall stools near the windows playing with his phone. Gabriel noticed him and waved him over to formally introduce him to Mira.

“This is Mira, high school buddy, ex-girlfriend, best buddy,” he said, sneering. “And this is Kalmin, co-worker, cool dude, plays hockey, transferred to this café in the beginning of April.”

“Nice to meet you,” Mira said with a bright smile. She looked better today. Kalmin held out his hand and she shook it. “Gabriel didn’t tell me he was a barista at this place.”

“Well, I did apply here in May,” he shrugged.

While they chatted, Kalmin remembered a lecture in Psychology class. It was about the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon. The phenomenon when an individual learns a new obscure piece of information and suddenly afterwards encounters it everywhere. Mira and Deimos was this information, and suddenly he saw them everywhere. 

_Everywhere._

 

_\- - -_

 

So that's your preview guys. Ready for an art dump? 

Here's some volume title cards:

  

Thumbnail on Tapas: 

 

Info cards:  

 

The Scene from chapter 1:

 

And a big thanks to everyone from my children <3

 

Ok that's that. If you are deprived of my kids, check out the [comic version](https://tapas.io/series/Stupidly-Beautiful). I started making a series based on volume one. (I'm just doing a million things at once)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll see ya guys on volume two! Thank you all for the love and support, you guys seriously all rock <3  
> (Now I'm going back to playing Dream Daddy)  
> (CraigismineaswellasDamien)  
> (I'mpoly-curiouswhatcanIsay)  
> (Ipraythatthecultendingisjustahoax)  
> (LIKETHECRYPTIDSTHATROBHUNTS)  
> (CANANYOFYOUGUYSREADTHIS)

**Author's Note:**

> Tapas: [Local Lil Kiddo](https://tapas.io/LocalLilKid)  
> Tumblr: [local-little-kiddos-art](https://local-little-kiddos-art.tumblr.com/)


End file.
